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^  PRINCETON,  N.J.  6^ 


Presented   by       CjV\C^    CAvAVVkOr*. 


Dk'ision JiSZ-^lb 

Section 


V 


SEP  M^  1917 


The  Inner  Witness  of 
the  Fourth  Gospel 


By 


Rev.  Lawrence  Keister,  A.  M.,  S.  T.  B. 


Nihil  in  sacris  scripturis  prae- 
ter  Christum  quaerendum" 


The  Otterbein  Press 

Dayton,  Ohio 

1915 


Copyright 

1915 

By  Lawrence  Keister 


PREFACE. 

There  are  questions  raised  in  our  present  life 
which  require  our  personal  answer.  As  these  ques- 
tions are  defined  more  clearly  we  formulate  our 
answer  more  definitely  till  we  approach  our  final 
answer,  which  is  no  longer  up  for  review  or  even 
subject  to  change.  Thus  we  are  the  voluntary  or 
involuntary  exemplars  of  our  own  theory  of  exist- 
ence. We  decide  for  ourselves  just  what  life  shall 
mean  for  us,  and  offer  to  others  our  solution  of  the 
problem  of  our  present  existence. 

As  our  mental  and  moral  equipment  fits  us  for  this 
task,  we  should  suffer  no  real  hardship  in  assuming 
our  responsibility  nor  ever  feel  inclined  to  shirk 
it  by  leaving  our  case  to  be  decided  by  others  or 
allowing  it  to  go  by  default.  Men  are  made  to 
act  intelligently,  morally,  and  religiously.  They  are 
constituted  for  self-knowledge,  for  association  with 
their  fellows,  and  for  the  perception  of  God  and 
the  appreciation  of  God.  So  we  see  that  reve- 
lation finds  a  place  in  man's  constitution  as  well  as 
in  God's  purpose. 

Revelation  may  be  regarded,  like  nature,  as  orig- 
inally given  by  God  and  then  as  continually  sus- 
tained by  Him.  This  is  what  we  find  in  the  Bible. 
Here  God  is  revealed  to  men  and  this  revelation  is 
always  valid,  just  as  it  is  always  vital.  God  reveals 
Himself  in  Christ,  and  all  He  has  made  known 
concerning  Himself  becomes  real  and  true  to  the 
earnest  inquirer. 

3 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

The  study  of  the  Bible  becomes  most  interesting 
when  it  becomes  man's  best  means  of  securing  a 
comprehensive  view  of  existence  and  a  practical 
working  theory  for  every-day  life.  No  part  of  the 
Bible  appears  to  be  better  adapted  to  this  end  than 
the  Gospel  of  John.  It  offers  efficient  aid  and  gen- 
uine comfort  to  the  man  who  wants  to  live  as  a 
rational,  moral,  and  religious  being. 

We  take  the  fourth  Gospel  as  the  translator  gives 
it  to  us.  Our  quotations  are  from  the  American 
Revision,  with  occasional  use  of  the  margin  in  pref- 
erence to  the  text.  We  have  held  in  mind  the  fact 
that  John  wrote  with  a  practical  end  in  view.  Our 
aim  has  been  kept  in  harmony  with  his,  and  we  have 
never  permitted  ourself  to  drift  into  speculative 
thinking.  In  order  to  reach  the  right  solution  of 
the  problem  of  life,  our  thinking  must  accord  with 
the  thought  of  God.  Otherwise  revelation  has 
missed  its  chief  end  for  us  and  we  have  missed  its 
real  meaning. 

The  study  of  the  fourth  Gospel  which  is  here 
presented,  was  originally  the  result  of  class  work 
in  association  with  earnest  students  whose  interest 
stimulated  thought  and  incidentally  encouraged  the 
teacher  of  this  little  group  to  become  the  author  of 
this  little  volume.  Interest  thus  awakened  has  never 
waned  through  years  of  patient  investigation  and 
the  slow  process  of  revision,  but  has  steadily  in- 
creased while  the  prayer  was  continually  offered  thai 
the  Spirit  Who  inspired  this  Gospel,  would  also 
inspire  this   interpretation  of  it. 

4 


Preface 

Assistance  has  been  secured  from  every  available 
source.  If  it  was  a  pleasure  to  read  much  of  the 
rich  literature  of  the  subject,  it  is  likewise  a  pleas- 
ure to  express  our  indebtedness,  in  this  general  way 
at  least,  to  each  writer  whose  pages  have  offered 
their  efficient  aid.  Special  acknowledgment  must  be 
made  of  the  judicious  criticisms  and  valuable  sug- 
gestions of  Prof.  John  McNaugher,  D.D.,  of  the 
Pittsburgh  Theological  Seminary,  who  twice  passed 
upon  the  manuscript. 

This  volume  is  given  to  the  public  as  one  form 
of  ministry  which  should  be  no  less  sacred  than  the 
preaching  of  the  Word,  because  it  should  be  inspired 
by  the  same  Spirit  and  should  proclaim  the  same 
Christ.  If  it  opens  the  Gospel  of  John  to  the  mind 
of  any  seeker  after  truth,  if  it  enables  any  man  to 
know  God  better,  if  it  throws  light  on  the  pathway 
of  a  single  soul,  it  will  have  done  something  well 
worth  doing. 

L.  K. 

Scottdale^  Pennsylvania. 

December.  1914. 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  Gospel  of  John  evidently  emanated  from  a 
mature  mind  after  long  years  of  reflection  and  after 
the  teachings  it  contains  were  tested  by  experience. 
As  a  consequence,  we  find  Christian  theology  and 
Christian  philosophy,  as  well  as  the  life  of  Christ 
and  the  history  of  the  brief  period  covered  by  His 
public  ministry.  As  a  life  of  Jesus,  it  emphasizes 
certain  periods  and  supplies  certain  omissions  that 
are  essential  to  convey  a  true  conception  of  His 
unique  Personality.  The  last  of  the  Gospels  to  be 
written,  it  is  the  last  also  to  be  read  with  a  proper 
appreciation  of  its  theological  and  philosophical 
significance. 

Redemption  is  the  general  theme,  and  the  su- 
preme necessity  of  an  adequate  Redeemer  demands 
discriminating  description  and  the  most  satisfactory 
evidence  in  proof  of  His  presence  and  power. 
Hence,  John's  thought  gathers  about  the  Person  of 
Christ  in  Whom  he  finds  the  solution  of  every  prob- 
lem of  being  and  well-being.  His  relation  to  God 
and  man  covers  the  whole  field  of  moral  conflict  and 
moral  development.  His  humanity  is  typical  as  well 
as  real.  His  deity  is  demonstrated  as  actual  and 
essential.  If  we  accept  Jesus  Christ  as  John  ac- 
cepted Him  from  personal  knowledge,  we  will  ac- 
cept the  Gospel  of  John  as  a  plain  presentation  of 
the  greatest  Person  in  history  and  the  greatest 
theme  for  human  thought. 

7 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

We  do  no  violence  to  our  subject  when  we  ap- 
proach it  from  the  viewpoint  of  theology  ^and 
philosophy,  not  with  the  purpose  of  shaping  the 
gospel  according  to  our  theory,  but  of  shaping  our 
theory  according  to  the  gospel.  Perhaps  we  may 
see  more  clearly  from  the  new  angle  of  vision.  Ac- 
cording to  Sir  William  Hamilton,  *'no  difficulty 
emerges  in  theology  which  has  not  previously 
emerged  in  philosophy."  Philosophy,  however,  has 
never  been  able  to  solve  the  problems  of  theology, 
because  human  reason  can  never  safely  dispense 
with  the  divine  thinking.  We  must,  therefore,  ap- 
propriate the  divine  thought  as  the  essential  fact 
and  factor  of  our  system  of  knowledge.  We  must 
digest  it  in  order  to  obtain  clear,  complete,  and 
consistent  views  of  our  own  and  in  order  to  organize 
it  in  a  rational  system  as  a  part  of  our  own  mental 
constitution  and  for  our  own  mental  convenience. 
The  mind  of  the  apostle  reveals  no  conflicting  con- 
ceptions, no  diverting  doubts,  no  unanswered  ques- 
tions, and  we  are  invited  to  enter  into  mental  and 
spiritual  sympathy  with  him.  If  our  method  is 
unusual  it  need  not  be  uninteresting,  unfruitful,  or 
unorthodox.  We  may  even  receive  material  aid  in 
forming  deeper  and  truer  conceptions  of  the  funda- 
mental doctrines  of  the  gospel ;  we  may  thus  prepare 
ourselves  for  other  studies  that  have  an  entirely 
different  aim  and  bearing;  we  may  even  nerve  our- 
selves for  the  divine  life  in  the  midst  of  a  sinful 
world. 

It  ought  to  be  the  earnest  desire  of  every  man 
to  know  what  the  author  of  the  fourth  Gospel  held 

8 


Introduction 

to  be  true  and  what  he  himself  believed.  We  mean 
the  truth  the  author  accepted,  part  by  part,  and  as 
one  complete  whole,  forming  in  his  mind  one  con- 
sistent system  of  thought..  Our  reward  will  be 
ample  if  indeed  we  are  able  to  discover  the  funda- 
mental truth  which  was  held  by  John,  the  meta- 
physician among  the  gospel  writers.  However  his 
teaching  may  be  conveyed,  whether  by  spoken  word 
here  recorded,  by  significant  act  here  interpreted,  or 
by  living  example  here  portrayed,  our  minds  must 
rise  above  the  separate  verses  and  paragraphs  and 
chapters  and  catch  distinct  views  of  those  great 
vistas  of  thought  which  were  familiar  to  the  mind  of 
John  as  directly  derived  from  the  mind  of  the 
Master  and  as  the  favorite  fields  of  private  medi- 
tation. 

Our  task  lies  in  the  realm  of  New  Testament 
theology,  dealing  as  it  does  with  the  original  form 
of  New  Testament  teaching,  but  we  seek  no  system 
aside  from  the  organic  unity  of  the  Gospel  itself. 
Our  study  should  bring  us  face  to  face  with  the 
elemental  truths  of  Christianity  from  the  viewpoint 
of  a  mind  in  full  sympathy  with  these  truths.  If  it 
is  suggestive  rather  than  systematic,  it  may  still 
be  eflfective  in  bringing  us  into  the  living  presence 
of  the  one  great,  divine  Person,  Who  is  the  light 
and  life  of  men.  As  we  become  conscious  of  His 
presence  and  our  eyes  behold  the  light  emanating 
from  His  holy  character ;  as  He  instructs  us  by  His 
wisdom,  invests  us  with  His  love  and  bids  our 
minds  soar  like  the  eagle  on  the  wings  of  His  own 
triumphant  thought :  as  we  consider  His  power  over 

9 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  men  who  surrounded  Him,  the  impulses  that 
moved  them  and  the  ideals  that  inspired  them;  as 
we  weigh  the  events  history  attributes  to  these 
agents  and  link  them  with  the  records  of  the  past 
and  present,  we  can  better  appreciate  the  real  sig- 
nificance of  the  doctrines  of  the  Gospel.  They  are 
emanations  of  life  ever  vital  and  ever  returning 
to  the  soul  of  man  to  vitalize  it  with  the  breath  of 
God.  Our  study  must  therefore  develop  or  dwarf 
us.  It  will  enable  us  to  know  ourselves  better  as  in- 
dividuals and  as  related,  and  better  in  both  our  nat- 
ural and  our  spiritual  Hfe.  It  will  develop  within 
us  a  deeper  faith  in  Christ  or  discover  an  ever-deep- 
ening doubt. 

Christian  doctrine  necessarily  calls  forth  a  Chris- 
tian philosophy.  Christian  truth  cannot  be  con- 
ceived or  taught  as  unrelated.  It  permeates  every 
field  of  thought  and  life,  and  so  when  doctrine  is 
under  consideration,  Christianity  is  the  generic  term 
and  religion  the  specific,  for  Christianity  includes  all 
truth  and  no  error,  while  the  ethnic  religions  in- 
clude some  truth  and  much  error  in  combination. 
The  thinking  man  seeks  to  know  the  true  relation 
of  the  soul  to  God  and  also  the  relation  of  the  soul 
to  all  things.  He  needs  a  comprehensive  and  con- 
sistent system  of  thought  that  is  true  for  the  world 
about  him  as  well  as  for  the  world  within  him. 
Here  we  find  it  in  the  Gospel  of  John  in  statements 
and  implications  and  conceptions  that  lend  them- 
selves to  philosophical  as  well  as  religious  interpre- 
tation.    Did  the  last  Gospel  writer  realize  this  need 

10 


Introduction 

and  then  supply  it  near  the  close  of  the  first  Chris- 
tian century? 

In  this  view  of  the  Gospel  of  John  we  do  not 
claim  absolute  originality,  though  no  work  has  yet 
appeared  in  which  it  is  fully  stated  or  definitely  de- 
veloped. Here  and  there  in  the  rich  literature  of 
the  subject  we  find  isolated  statements  like  the  fol- 
lowing, which  may  help  to  elucidate  and  support 
our  general  idea. 

Luther  called  the  Gospel  of  John,  "the  child's 
Gospel,"  and  "the  one,  true,  tender,  main  Gospel,'' 
supplemental  sayings  that  express  his  profound 
knowledge  and  appreciation.  Dr.  Henry  Van  Dyke 
characterizes  it  as  "this  Gospel  of  a  Person,"  thus 
fixing  his  thought  upon  the  great,  central  agent. 
Clement  of  Alexandria  points  out  that  John  made 
"a  spiritual  Gospel,"  so  much  needed  by  men  and 
not  fully  furnished  by  the  Synoptists.  The  meeting 
place  of  God  and  man  is  no  longer  behind  temple 
curtains,  but  in  the  mind  and  heart  that  welcomes 
the  Christ  in  sincere  obedience. 

Kaufman  calls  the  author,  "the  Plato  of  the  in- 
spired circle,"  while  another  writer  expresses  his 
opinion  of  his  work  in  these  words,  "The  work  is  a 
philosophical  one,  the  result  of  reflection  on  the 
character  and  words  of  Jesus."  With  his  accus- 
tomed insight  and  happy  expression,  Godet  says,  "It 
was  he  who  bequeathed  to  the  world  in  his  three 
works  his  threefold  picture  of  the  life  in  God ;  in 
the  person  of  Christ  (the  Gospel)  ;  in  the  Christian 
(the  Epistles);  in  the  Church  (the  Apocalypse)." 
The  Rev.  Clark  S.  Beardslee  says  of  John:    "This 

11 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

man  who  pens  this  fourth  account  takes  from  these 
common  actions  a  chosen  few  and  thinks  of  them 
and  grows  into  them  and  gets  the  weight  of  them 
and  sees  their  size  and  penetrates  to  their  philos- 
ophy. .  .  .  Here  is  a  disciple  who  saw  the  Sav- 
ior's philosophy  of  things." 

Shall  we  not  assert  as  a  result  of  our  own  study 
that  John's  view  is  comprehensive  like  that  of  a 
philosopher;  that  the  truth  he  sets  forth  is  funda- 
mental; that  his  system  of  thought  is  consistent; 
that  he  always  represents  Christ  and  never  misrep- 
resents Him  ?  Shall  we  not  consider  that  there  must 
be  a  Christian  philosophy  if  Christian  truth  is  funda- 
mental, as  it  claims  to  be?  "This  is  another  world 
since  Christ  came  into  it,"  said  Horace  Bushnell. 
His  presence  and  his  teaching  profoundly  affect  the 
life  and  thought  of  men,  and,  as  Paul  well  knew, 
every  thought  should  be  brought  into  subjection  to 
Christ  and  every  man  should  assuredly  know  that 
"in  Him  all  things  consist." 

In  like  manner  we  may  expect  a  consensus  of 
opinion  with  reference  to  the  great  central  theme 
of  John's  Gospel.  An  eminent  writer  declares  that 
"the  progressive  revelation  of  Christ's  glory — this 
is  the  central  theme  of  the  fourth  Gospel."  An- 
other says :  "The  peculiarity  of  this  fourth  Gospel 
is  that  it  is  all  center.  There  is  nothing  in  it  but 
the  person  of  Christ;  ...  the  doctrine  of  the 
kingdom  has  been  swallowed  up  in  the  person  and 
presence  of  the  King."  From  the  pen  of  the  Rev. 
Frederick  Palmer,  this  quotation:  "If  we  had  pos- 
sessed  no  more   than   the  first   three   Gospels,   we 

12 


Introduction 

should  have  had  a  wonderful  Christ,  an  example 
and  an  inspiration.  But  He  would  be  a  historic 
being  only;  we  should  have  had  no  warrant  for 
identifying  Him  with  the  divine  life  of  souls,  dwell- 
ing with  us  and  abiding  in  us.  But  the  Christ  of 
the  fourth  Gospel  is  the  connecting  link  between  the 
outward  and  the  inward,  between  the  historical 
and  the  spiritual." 

The  real  subject  of  our  study,  then,  is  a  Person  to^ 
Whom  we  stand  related  in  our  thought  life,  our 
emotional  life,  our  volitional  life,  and  not  merely 
by  the  accidents  of  individual  existence.  We,  too, 
are  invited  into  the  realm  of  personal  life  in  response 
to  His  appeal  by  means  of  those  immediate  rela- 
tions that  mark  them  as  divine,  and  which  should 
therefore  be  respected  as  supreme.  As  we  are  per- 
sonally interested  in  this  great  Teacher,  we  are  con- 
cerned with  His  philosophy,  which  offers  form 
and  substance  to  our  thinking  and  thus  aids  in 
molding  our  character,  shaping  our  career,  and 
determining  our  destiny. 

If  we  have  rightly  estimated  our  task,  we  may 
proceed  in  the  spirit  of  the  scholar  who  wants  to 
know  accurately  and  profoundly,  who  desires  knowl- 
edge that  can  be  organized  in  a  rational  system. 
We  may  proceed  in  the  spirit  of  the  Christian  who 
accepts  Christ  for  all  He  is,  both  human  and  di- 
vine, who  regards  Him  as  the  Son  of  man  and  the 
Son  of  God.  We  may  proceed,  step  by  step,  with 
a  rising  desire  to  know  God  as  He  is  revealed  in 
Christ  and  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  whatever  the  effect 
may  be  upon  our  thinking,  our  theory  of  life,  our 

13 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

character,  our  personality,  and  our  final  future.  As 
we  advance  reverently  and  yet  courageously  we  may 
well  maintain  the  attitude  of  faith  and  thus  wel- 
come the  sweet  influence  and  the  saving  power  of 
the  Gospel  with  an  ever  increasing  assurance  that 
both  will  be  as  beneficent  as  the  One  from  Whom 
they  emanate — Who  is  the  soul  and  center  of  reve- 
lation and  Who  ofifers  Himself  to  each  of  us  as  the 
soul  and  center  of  an  otherwise  imperfect  person- 
alitv. 


14 


CONTENTS. 


Introduction 7 

PART  I.     DOCTRINAL  AND  HISTORIC  BASIS 
Chanter  I.  The  Self-Revealing  God  .       17 


Chapter  II. 


The  Incarnate  Word 


PART  II.    THE  PROMISED  MESSIAH 


Chapter  III. 
Chapter  IV. 
Chapter  V. 
Chapter  VI. 

Chapter  VII. 


Chapter  VIII. 
Chapter  IX. 
Chapter  X. 
Chapter  XI. 

Chapter  XII. 

Chapter  XIII. 
Chapter  XIV. 
Chapter  XV. 
Chapter  XVI. 
Chapter  XVII. 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 
Supremacy  of  Jesus     .... 
Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being     . 
John's  Testimony  Repeated  and 

Completed  

The    Nature    of    True    Worship 

and  the  Knowledge  of  God  as 

a  Spirit 

The  Omnipresence  of  Jesus 
The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus     . 
Christ  and  Creation     .... 
The    Messiah    of    Prophecy    and 

the  Christ  of  History 
A    Great    Sinner    and    a    Great 

Savior 

Basis  of  Moral  Obligation 
The  Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus 
The  New  Moral  Order         .      . 
The  Deity  of  Christ         .      .      . 
National  Recognition  of  Jesus  as 

the  King  of  Israel         .      .      . 


36 


49 
62 
76 

88 


95 
106 
114 
129 

146 

160 
168 
181 
192 
203 

217 


PART  III.    THE  SPIRITUAL  LEADER 
Chapter  XVIII.      Individual  Dealing  and  Personal 

Ministry  233 

Chapter  XIX.  Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine 

Life  of  Men        -.24^" 


Chapter  XX.  Social  Service  Sustained  by  Di- 
vine Agency 263- 

Chapter  XXI.  Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  In- 

dividual and  for  Society   .      .     276 

Chapter  XXII.  The  Prayer  of  Jesus,  or  the  Un- 
obstructed Approach  to  God      290 

PART  IV.     THE  DIVINE  REDEEMER 

Chapter  XXIII.      Christ    at    the    Bar    of    Human 

Judgment 307 

Chapter  XXIV.       Crucified,   Dead,  and   Buried,  or 

the    Promise    Fulfilled      .        .     325 

Chapter  XXV.         The   Resurrection   of  Jesus   and 

the   Life   Beyond   Death     .     .     340 

Chapter  XXVI.        A    Personal    Interview     ...     359 

Chapter  XXVII.     Conclusion 367 


PART  1 
Doctrinal  and  Historic  Basis 


CHAPTER    I. 
The  Self-Revealing  God. 

The  initial  sentence  of  the  Gospel  of  John  pre- 
sents to  our  minds  the  divine  being  and  conveys  a 
definite  idea  of  the  divine  life.  *Tn  the  beginning," 
before  creation,  God  existed  in  the  perfection  of 
His  own  conscious  life,  and  His  independent  and 
absolute  existence  becomes  the  best  possible  starting 
point  in  our  attempt  to  understand  His  manifesta- 
tion in  the  world  and  His  presence  in  human  history. 
The  Word  is  the  revealer  of  God,  Whose  existence 
is  asserted  and  not  assumed  or  proved,  for  men  must 
assuredly  know  that  there  is  a  God  to  be  revealed. 
They  may  be  able  to  discover  God  in  nature  and  in 
human  history,  but  they  should  know  Him  also  in 
His  independent  existence  in  order  to  appreciate 
His  essential  deity.  The  Being  whom  John  calls 
God  is  not  merely  a  relative,  but  also  an  absolute  ex- 
istence. No  other  being  appears  beyond  Him,  as  no 
other  rises  above  Him,  and  so  He  stands  alone  and 
supreme  in  the  beginning  to  which  John  here  points 
his  readers. 

Closely  wrapped  in  his  first  sentence,  yet  clearly 
traceable  therein,  are  the  three  essential  elements  of 
John's  conception  of  God :  First,  His  self-existence, 
which  always  characterizes  Deity;  second.  His  di- 
vine personality  with  its  corresponding  life ;  and 
third.  His  power  of  self-revelation,  which  issues  in 

17 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  incarnation.  In  his  plan  of  presentation,  his 
conception  of  God  is  necessarily  primary,  having  the 
place  and  function  of  a  logical  premise.  He  begins 
with  being  and  then  proceeds  to  show  its  various 
manifestations  by  which  its  nature  is  disclosed. 
Hence,  a  right  conception  of  God,  in  Himself,  His 
personal  life,  and  His  self-manifestation  through 
the  Word,  lays  the  best  possible  foundation  for  con- 
sistent thought  all  the  way  through  his  Gospel,  while 
an  imperfect  or  false  idea  at  the  beginning  would 
vitiate  his  whole  doctrinal  system.  He  thus  avoids 
this  prolific  source  of  error  in  so  much  of  the  reli- 
gious thought  of  the  race. 

The  three  elemental  ideas  in  his  conception  of 
God  are  fruitful  throughout  his  Gospel,  but  John 
naturally  emphasizes  the  second  and  third,  person- 
ality and  self-revelation.  John  wishes  his  readers 
to  see  God  beyond  and  outside  of  history  before  they 
see  Him  in  history,  but  in  both  views,  God  is  essen- 
tially the  same.  In  the  Old  Testament  the  first  ele- 
mental idea  had  been  emphasized,  while  in  the  New 
Testament  the  other  two  appear  with  greater  prom- 
inence. In  his  doctrine  of  the  Word,  we  find  a 
clear  conception  of  personality  and  the  manifest 
purpose  of  self-revelation.  God  will  make  Himself 
known  to  men  in  a  perfectly  comprehensible  manner 
and  in  perfect  consistency  with  His  own  absolute 
being. 

His  first  statement,  therefore,  introduces  a  Divine 
Person,  Whom  John  names  "the  Word,"  describes 
as  the  associate  of  God,  and  then  identifies  with  GocT 
so  closely  as  to  express  his  thought  in  the  positive 

18 


The  Self-Revealing  God 

assertion,  "the  Word  was  God."  This  identification, 
however,  does  not  in  any  way  interfere  with  the 
real  association  of  the  Word  with  God,  as  he  imme- 
diately makes  plain,  "The  same  was  in  the  beginning 
with  God."  The  Word  is  further  described  as  be- 
ing causally  related  to  the  world  and  actively  inter- 
ested in  men,  their  being  and  life,  present  and  fu- 
ture, so  that  the  whole  Gospel  may  be  considered  a 
development  of  this  idea.  But  to  lift  men  morally, 
to  liberate  them  spiritually,  to  reconstitute  and  per- 
fect human  personality,  a  lifting  power  equal  to  the 
task  must  be  enlisted,  a  constituted  and  perfected 
Personality  as  the  actual  beginning  and  the  true 
center  of  divine  life  among  men.  Presenting  this 
constituted  and  constituting  center  at  the  very  open- 
ing of  his  book,  John  proceeds  with  the  development 
as  confident  of  his  conclusions  as  he  is  free  in  his 
mental  movements. 

If  John  begins  his  teaching  on  a  high  table-land 
of  thought,  let  us  observe,  as  we  proceed,  that  he 
maintains  it  to  the  end.  He  never  loses  sight  of 
the  Divine  Person  he  seeks  to  declare  to  us,  and 
the  one  way  that  seems  to  lie  open  before  him  is  the 
direct  path  that  brings  him  face  to  face  with  the 
Divine.  His  method  of  approach  is  neither  impos- 
sible to  him  nor  to  us,  but  the  most  simple  and  ef- 
fective, and  therefore  the  one  he  adopts  and  recom- 
mends. The  knowledge  of  God  conveys  to  the 
mind  and  heart  a  sense  of  its  directness,  however 
circuitous  its  channels  or  numerous  its  connecting 
links,  just  as  God's  relation  to  the  world  is  immedi- 
ate and  causal.     New  Testament  writers,  like  the 

19 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

writers  of  the  Old  Testament,  think  of  God  as  a 
Person,  and  hence  the  knowledge  of  Him  must  be 
conveyed  by  direct  communication,  whether  by  per- 
sonal presence,  the  word  addressed  to  the  ear,  the 
vision  presented  to  the  eye,  or  the  dream  in  which 
the  mind  receives  facts  and  impressions  that  arc 
accepted  as  true.  The  initial  doctrine  of  the  Gos- 
pel of  John  simply  meets  the  conditions  of  the  case 
by  presenting  God  as  revealed  in  the  Word,  before 
Whom  man  is  brought  face  to  face. 

The  singular  brevity  of  the  introductory  sentences 
of  the  Gospel  of  John  in  no  wise  interfered  with  the 
clearness  or  the  expression  of  the  author's  thought. 
The  initial  conception  is  perfectly  defined  and  ca- 
pable of  statement  in  written  form.  He  sets  before 
us  a  conception  that  has  evidently  been  divinely  com- 
municated to  him  and  intuitively  apprehended  by 
him.  It  is  not  the  product  of  investigation  or  re- 
peated observations.  No  course  of  reasoning  and 
no  exercise  of  imagination  could  compass  the  barest 
outlines  of  the  Word,  as  the  Word  is  clearly  con- 
ceived in  his  thought  and  as  clearly  defined  and  de- 
scribed in  these  three  introductory  sentences.  Yet 
his  conception  has  become  his  own,  a  practical  work- 
ing idea,  being  real  knowledge  of  a  real  fact. 

John  directs  our  attention  to  the  Word  as  the  in- 
itial being  in  the  cosmic  order.  His  first  fact  is 
mind,  and  mind  in  the  definite  form  of  personality. 
He  subsequently  concerns  himself  with  matter  and 
by  necessary  implication  its  laws  also,  as  subordi- 
nate conceptions  emerging  in  their  natural  order  and 
falling  into  their  logical  place.     He  omits  nothing 

20 


The  Self-Revealing  God 

from  the  system  of  things,  but  bases  the  whole  cre- 
ated order  upon  being  of  the  personal  kind. 

The  Word  stands  forth  independent  of  the  cos- 
mic order.  He  does  not  exist  through  creation,  but 
creation  exists  through  Him.  He  does  not  come  to 
consciousness  in  creation.  When  He  enters  into 
cosmic  relations  He  enters  as  the  expression  of 
mind.  He  is  the  Word.  He  is  the  manifestation  of 
a  mind  that  posits  the  Word  in  all  His  meaning, 
extensive  and  intensive.  Yet  the  Word  evidently 
exists  in  His  own  right  and  on  His  own  account  as 
a  rational  being,  with  the  power  of  action  and  ex- 
pression, the  power  to  represent  Another,  and  hence 
the  power  of  a  true  selfhood  on  the  plane  of  being 
and  life  of  the  One  He  adequately  represents. 

The  second  teaching  concerning  the  Word,  that 
He  is  the  associate  of  God,  is  true  beyond  the  rim 
of  the  cosmic  order.  It  precedes  creation  and  in 
no  wise  depends  upon  it.  It  was  not  realized  in 
and  through  creation  for  the  first  time,  but  finds  its 
place  among  the  beginnings  that  are  not  to  be  other- 
wise accounted  for  or  explained.  It  must  be  ac- 
cepted as  the  fellowship  of  moral  and  spiritual  life. 
Before  the  stars  first  sang  together,  a  deeper  note 
of  harmony  had  sounded  in  the  divine  nature,  "the 
Word  was  with  God,"  a  harmony  that  is  character- 
istic and  essential  in  holy  life  and  holy  being. 

As  a  third  mark,  John  asserts  the  deity  of  the 
Word,  "He  was  God,"  from  a  beginning  which  ante- 
dates the  cosmic  order.  His  deity  is  not  represented 
as  an  attainment,  but  appears  as  an  original  right 
and  reality  of  His  nature.    This  great,  fundamental 

21 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

truth  completes  John's  conception  of  this  initial 
being.  His  thought  is  rounded  out  as  a  rational 
whole  within  him,  while  before  him  stands  this  di- 
vine Person  Whom  he  discovers  at  the  very  begin- 
ning of  the  cosmic  order  and  subsequently  finds  at 
the  very  basis  of  it.  God  is  the  only  satisfactory  ex- 
planation of  creation  or  of  being.  The  Word  was 
God  and  is  God  by  a  real  oneness  of  being  and  life, 
a  real  identity  of  mental  aim  and  action,  of  moral 
principle  and  purpose,  of  personal  preference  and 
promise.  Such  is  the  thought  of  John,  as  stated  and 
implied,  and  no  element  of  his  conception  can  be 
lost  or  obscured  without  sinking  below  the  level  of 
his  Gospel  in  its  subsequent  development. 

In  his  second  sentence,  the  mind  of  John  seems 
to  cling  to  what  he  has  said  in  preparation  for  what 
is  to  follow.  The  Word  is  the  associate  of  God  in 
the  initiation  of  the  cosmic  order,  which  in  no  way 
disturbs  this  fundamental  relation  of  being  and 
life.  God  is  not  lost  in  creation  nor  does  He  stand 
apart  from  it.  He  remains  in  relation  to  it  while 
He  is  superior  to  it.  Nor  does  this  relation  of  the 
Word  to  the  world  in  any  way  interfere  with  His 
association  with  God,  but  rather  affords  an  oppor- 
tunity to  reveal  it  where  it  were  otherwise  unknown. 
John  feels  no  need  of  changing  or  even  modifying 
his  original  conception  of  the  Word.  On  the  other 
hand,  he  gathers  it  into  a  usable  unity  of  thought 
and  expression  when  he  says,  "The  same  was  in  the 
beginning  with  God."  There  is  more  to  be  said 
about  Him,  but  what  has  been  said  conveys  a  def- 

22 


The  Self-Revealing  God 

inite  knowledge  that  must  not  be  lost  or  vacated  by 
our  minds  as  we  proceed. 

John's  third  sentence  affirms  that  all  things  were 
made  by  the  Word,  by  His  wisdom,  His  power,  His 
agency,  and  by  Him  alone.  The  making  is  not 
simply  shaping  or  forming,  but  originating  also 
and  constituting  under  natural  law.  Material  ex- 
istence with  all  its  forces  and  laws  are  viewed  as 
the  product  of  His  creative  power,  and  hence  are 
entirely  dependent  upon  Him,  first  for  their  initial 
existence  and  then  for  their  continued  existence, 
though  time  is  scarcely  a  factor  in  these  conceptions 
that  preface  the  fourth  Gospel.  The  modern  sci- 
entist demands  great  stretches  of  time  for  creation, 
while  the  apostle  relies  solely  upon  God. 

Like  God,  the  Word,  or  the  Christ,  as  we  are  sub- 
sequently taught  to  call  Him,  has  no  past  or  present 
or  future  such  as  condition  merely  cosmic  beings. 
His  is  primarily  unconditioned  existence,  intelligent, 
free,  absolute.  If  He  enters  into  cosmic  relations 
He  enters  of  His  own  impulse  and  will.  With  ref- 
erence to  the  world,  the  Word  is  creative ;  with  ref- 
erence to  man,  redemptive,  as  subsequently  appears ; 
with  reference  to  God,  revealer,  associate,  and  even 
equal.  His  personality  occupies  the  plane  of  Deity. 
His  being  is  not  conditioned  from  without,  but  only 
from  within,  as  all  true  personality  must  be.  As 
we  never  ask  what  God's  past  has  been  or  what  His 
future  will  be,  so  we  find  it  no  more  fitting  to  ask 
concerning  the  future  of  the  Christ,  unless  we  limit 
our  thought  to  His  human  nature.  His  deity  bears 
all  the  marks  of  deity.     He  is  the  same  yesterday, 

23 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

to-day,  and  forever.  Even  His  humanity  has  been 
upHfted  and  re-enforced  by  His  divine  attributes 
without  the  loss  of  His  human  nature,  suggesting 
a  life  for  man  that  is  less  and  less  conditioned  from 
without. 

Since  the  Christian  is  related  to  the  Christ  in  a 
most  real  and  most  personal  way,  why  should  he  not 
be  less  and  less  anxious  about  his  own  future  ?  His 
present  should  assume  supreme  importance  in  so  far 
as  time  concerns  him.  'This  is  the  work  of  God 
that  ye  believe  on  Him  Whom  He  hath  sent."  This 
one  supreme  relation,  timeless  in  itself  if  not  in  its 
realization,  gathers  up  in  itself  all  the  Hfe  of  man,  all 
his  being,  all  his  normal  development,  all  his  past, 
present,  and  future,  so  that  these  time  measures  and 
conditions  actually  mean  less  to  him  as  his  relation 
to  God  means  more. 

The  Johannine  conception  of  the  Word  is  that  of 
an  uncreated  being,  rational,  moral,  divine  in  na- 
ture and  method  of  life.  Who  fills  out  the  category 
of  personality,  Who  creates  the  material  universe, 
Who  enters  human  history  in  order  to  reveal  God 
in  His  own  person  and  by  His  redemptive  work. 

No  dualism  finds  place  in  the  first  chapter  of  our 
Gospel,  not  even  in  covert  implication,  subsequently 
to  be  developed  or  eliminated,  just  as  none  appears 
in  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis,  where  we  are  told 
of  the  beginning  of  the  material  world.  God  is 
first  and  central  in  the  thought  of  John,  who  never 
needs  to  make  corrections,  emendations,  and  modi- 
fications as  he  proceeds  to  unfold  his  doctrine.  His 
consistency   throughout   his   Gospel   points   to   the 

24 


The  Self- Revealing  God 

fact  that  his  mind  holds  no  irrational  or  contradic- 
tory conceptions. 

We  can  speak  of  the  Word  as  a  causal  agent, 
using  metaphysical  terms,  without  violence  to  John's 
conception.  The  selfhood  of  the  Word  is  asserted, 
after  which  His  life  in  association  with  God  is  de- 
clared, and  finally  His  actual  deity.  He  could  not 
be  the  associate  of  God  in  any  true  sense  without 
essential  selfhood  and  true  divinity.  His  self- 
existence  finds  its  completion  in  His  life  of  asso- 
ciation, and  His  associational  existence  ministers  to 
His  self-life.  In  short,  He  is  deity  and  not  merely 
divine,  a  point  on  which  the  apostle  shows  no  lapse 
of  thought  and  no  lameness  of  conclusion.  The 
association  of  the  Word  with  God  is  real  and  ful- 
fills all  the  conditions,  intelligent  interest  in  the 
plans  of  God,  and  sympathetic  devotion  to  the  pur- 
poses of  God.  To  be  still  more  specific  on  a  point 
that  should  be  beyond  question,  we  should  weigh  the 
statement,  "The  Word  was  God."  He  is  divine, 
not  as  a  matter  of  pre-eminence  or  as  the  result  of 
attainment,  but  because  of  His  own  essential  na- 
ture. In  no  sense  is  He  a  product  of  earth,  but 
bursts  upon  our  view  in  the  perfection  of  His  per- 
sonality and  the  full  possession  of  His  powers. 

The  association  of  the  Word  with  God  is  car- 
ried back  to  the  very  beginning  in  the  second  state- 
ment, which  repeats  what  was  previously  said  with 
the  emphasis  on  the  eternal  existence  of  the  Word. 
He  is  not  a  created  being,  but  self-existent,  and 
hence  the  eternal  associate  of  God.  As  Rev.  James 
Lee  Mitchell  has  said,  "John  deals  not  with  Adam, 

25 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

refers  not  to  Abraham,  takes  no  pains  to  strengthen 
his  position  with  prophecies  in  time,  passes  by  cre- 
ation as  though  it  were  an  event  of  yesterday,  pene- 
trates the  eternal  past,  and  shows  us  Jesus  as  one 
with  the  Infinite  Father." 

From  this  point  of  view  we  appreciate  more  fully 
the  statement  that  the  Word  is  the  active  agent  and 
the  sole  agent  in  the  creation  of  all  things.  In 
Revelation  3 :  14,  He  is  called  "the  beginning  of  the 
creation  of  God,"  in  connection  with  "the  Amen" 
or  closing  of  this  present  order,  and  also  "the  faith- 
ful and  true  witness,"  apparently  descriptive  of  His 
character  and  work  in  the  intervening  period  of 
time.  As  Creator,  we  cannot  think  of  Him  as  a 
blind,  impersonal  agent,  but  intelligent,  powerful, 
benevolent,  and  all  that  world-construction  ration- 
ally requires.  He  is  the  Word  in  creation  and  in 
some  sense  in  prophecy,  but  more  perfectly  in  re- 
demption. In  creation  God  speaks  directly.  "He 
spake  and  it  was  done.  He  commanded  and  it  stood 
fast";  in  prophecy  He  addressed  men  through  His 
representative  to  whom  "the  word  of  the  Lord 
came" ;  in  redemption  He  manifests  Himself  in  the 
Person  of  Jesus  Christ,  Who  esteemed  Himself  as 
one  sent  by  God.  As  John's  conception  accords  with 
Old  Testament  teaching,  and  as  Jewish  teachers  in 
the  time  of  Christ  used  "the  Word  of  the  Lord"  to 
designate  the  manifested  Jehovah,  it  is  reasonable 
to  believe  that  it  was  derived  from  the  Old  Testa- 
ment rather  than  from  Philo,  of  whom  Professor 
Purves  says :  "His  Logos  was  the  divine  Reason 
and  only  obtained  existence  objective  to  God  for  the 

26 


The  Self-Revealing  God 

purpose  of  creation.  It  cannot  be  regarded  as  really 
personal  though  certainly  personified."  According 
to  Rev.  Henry  M.  King,  'Thilo's  teaching  was  the 
higher  criticism  of  that  day,  an  attempt  to  reduce 
revelation  to  a  philosophic  basis  by  the  hypothesis 
of  a  Logos,  personal  or  impersonal,  Philo  seemed  to 
be  uncertain  which,  the  embodiment  of  all  divine 
power  and  wisdom — a  doctrine  that  was  the  fruitful 
germ  of  all  the  gnostic  speculations  of  the  second 
and  third  centuries." 

Closely  related  to  the  knowledge  of  the  Word  as 
the  Creator  of  all  things,  is  the  knowledge  of  the 
Word  as  the  Source  of  all  life,  especially  the  life 
that  is  the  light  of  men,  the  highest  form  of  life  in 
the  created  world.  Here,  at  least,  every  man  should 
feel  and  know  the  creative  touch  of  God.  In  his 
intellectual  Hfe,  his  moral  life,  his  spiritual  life,  God 
has  distinguished  him  from  the  rest  of  creation 
and  constituted  him  man,  a  divine  birthright  that 
should  fully  attest  his  parentage.  The  process  of 
his  creation  bears  no  resemblance  to  evolution,  on 
the  mental  side,  at  least.  Life  is  in  the  Word,  and 
when  it  is  communicated  to  man  as  his  original  con- 
stitution and  endowment,  it  is  called  Hght,  for  cre- 
ation is  not  a  mere  transfer  from  God  to  man,  but 
rather  a  transformation  of  the  divine  gift  of  life 
into  the  light  of  a  human  spirit,  reproducing  in  man 
the  image  of  God.  Thus  the  light  within  finds  an 
answering  light  without.  The  Word  shines  as  the 
light  and  continues  to  be  the  life  and  light  of  men, 
as  the  devout  heart  in  every  age  has  found  and  as 

27 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

history  has  shown  in  every  revival  of  religion  that 
has  marked  its  course. 

The  light  meets  its  negation,  the  darkness,  and 
while  the  light  always  remains  light  and  always 
shines  according  to  its  own  nature  and  intensity,  the 
darkness  is  non-receptive,  apprehending  it  not,  or, 
if  we  prefer  the  marginal  reading,  demonstrates  its 
inferiority  in  that  it  overcomes  it  not.  The  light 
penetrates  the  darkness  but  is  never  lost  or  really 
dispelled  by  the  resistance  it  meets.  Its  rays  are 
universally  distributed  and  it  reaches  real  results, 
if  nothing  more  than  its  own  rejection,  which  is 
the  confirmation  of  the  darkened  mind  in  its  de- 
praved state.  The  divine  light  forever  proceeds 
from  its  Source,  revealing  moral  darkness  wherever 
it  exists,  refreshing  moral  light  with  its  superior 
rays  and  pointing  back  to  the  divine  life  as  the  real 
source  of  light  in  the  human  spirit.  The  light  of 
God  enters  man  in  the  form  of  life  from  God. 

Life  occupies  so  large  a  place  in  the  created 
world  that  it  requires  special  consideration  both  as 
to  its  origin  and  its  nature.  So  great  a  fact  cannot 
be  left  without  explanation.  As  it  appears  in  the 
cosmic  order  we  note  that  it  is  directly  related  to  the 
Being  Who  produced  that  order.  *Tn  Him  was 
life,"  we  are  told,  life  in  general,  all  life,  life  of 
every  kind,  from  the  lowest  plant  to  the  highest 
spiritual  being.  To  know  life  scientifically  and  sat- 
isfactorily, we  must  know  its  source,  which  is  the 
divine  Word.  Hence,  as  regards  its  origin  and  its 
varied  forms,  life  finds  its  complete  explanation  in 
the  creative  agency  of  God. 

28 


The  Self-Revealing  God 

It  is  neither  religious  nor  rational  to  refer  life  to 
natural  agencies  and  material  forces.  Life  is  es- 
sentially a  new  thing  which  is  not  reducible  to  some- 
thing else.  Mechanical  force  cannot  produce  it, 
and  chemical  combinations  cannot  explain  it,  though 
life  operates  like  a  capable  chemist  and  a  master 
mechanic.  It  organizes  materials,  but  is  not  the 
product  of  organization.  It  is  an  agent  of  another 
order,  and  hence  we  may  regard  it  as  another  evi- 
dence of  the  deity  of  the  Word,  or  we  may  look 
upon  it  as  a  greater  fact  than  matter,  to  be  studied 
in  its  origin,  its  nature,  and  its  development.  Mat- 
ter comes  into  existence  by  the  creative  act  of  God, 
while  life  has  its  source  and  origin  in  God.  Life 
has  a  divine  origin  and  partakes  of  the  divine 
nature. 

When  the  scientist  says  that  all  life  comes  from 
the  egg,  he  is  not  looking  for  its  ultimate  source, 
and  has  not  stood  with  John  at  the  outer  rim  of  the 
cosmic  order.  He  speaks  of  life  within  limits  and 
as  he  sees  it  under  the  microscope.  To  him  it  is 
a  fact  of  its  own  kind  which,  as  a  scientist,  he  can- 
not explain  to  his  own  satisfaction.  No  combina- 
tion of  chemical  elements  fully  accounts  for  its  ex- 
istence or  its  processes.  He  must  lift  his  eyes  above 
matter  in  order  to  discover  the  ultimate  origin  of 
life  or  really  to  appreciate  its  nature.  The  scientist 
may  stand  beside  the  apostle  just  as  the  apostle 
may  stand  beside  the  scientist,  and  both  may  see 
life  in  the  world  and  in  the  Word,  in  the  divine 
Mind,  in  the  benevolent  wisdom  and  power  and  pur- 
pose of  this  divine  Person.     Such  a  view  of  life  is 

29 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

at  least  rational,  and  certainly  more  scientific  than 
loosely  to  describe  it  as  an  evolution  of  natural 
forces,  however  long  the  process  and  imperceptible 
the  changes. 

The  life  of  God  is  always  the  light  of  men.  Reve- 
lation always  meets  man's  highest  reason  and  then 
forever  transcends  it.  Each  new  point  of  contact, 
each  new  conception  of  being,  makes  its  appeal  to 
reason  as  well  as  to  conscience  and  sufifices  for  the 
perfect  satisfaction  of  both.  The  scientist  cannot 
afiford  to  forget  that  he  is  a  logician  and  a  man, 
and  therefore  a  religious  being  to  whom  revelation 
makes  its  appeal.  The  author  of  the  fourth  Gospel 
knows  facts  that  concern  the  scientist  because  he 
knows  revelation  as  the  supreme  reason  and  the 
all-inclusive  knowledge. 

All  agree  that  the  highest  type  of  life  in  the  cos- 
mic order  appears  in  man,  the  highest  type  of  phys- 
ical life,  and  above  all,  the  intellectual,  moral,  and 
spiritual  life  that  distinguishes  man.  The  life  was 
the  Hght  of  men,  the  illuminating  life,  the  immaterial 
life,  the  fundamental  principle  of  man's  being.  Life 
of  this  kind,  life  that  is  light,  not  natural  but  spirit- 
ual, has  its  original  source  in  the  divine  Word.  It 
arises  in  the  divine  and  should  be  kept  on  its  own 
level.  Men  should  know  its  source  that  they  may 
know  its  nature,  its  contrast,  the  darkness,  and  its 
divine  development. 

The  darkness  is  inferior  as  compared  with  the 
light  and  the  life  as  both  proceed  from  the  Word, 
^len  are  tempted  to  believe  that  evil  is  greater  than 
good.      They    often    delude    themselves    with    the 

30 


The  Self- Revealing  God 

thought  that  the  good  man  knows  not  the  evil, 
while  the  evil  man  knows  both  good  and  evil.  The 
good  man  knows  evil  well  enough  to  reject  it,  while 
the  evil  man  cannot  know  the  good  in  its  essential 
nature  or  follow  it  out  to  its  completion.  Plato 
affirms  that  vice  cannot  know  virtue,  too,  but  a 
virtuous  nature,  educated  by  time,  will  acquire  a 
knowledge  both  of  virtue  and  of  vice.  The  Rev. 
J.  Ritchie  Smith  says,  ''Spiritual  truth  is  not  known 
till  it  is  obeyed,"  and  thus  the  angel  of  God  still 
guards  the  entrance  to  Paradise. 

The  immaterial  light  of  mind  and  spirit  shines 
into  other  minds  and  hearts  with  a  pervasive  radi- 
ance that  reflects  intelligent  being,  or  shall  we  say 
transports  one  personal  being  to  the  very  doorstep 
of  another  with  an  instinctive  appeal  for  a  worthy 
welcome.  How  natural  for  spirit  to  answer  to  spirit 
if  both  find  the  origin  of  their  life  in  the  Word ! 
How  readily  both  bow  before  God  in  recognition 
of  their  supreme  relationship  to  Him !  What  a  ba- 
sis for  prayer  as  a  relief  from  mental,  moral,  and 
spiritual  want,  and  especially  as  a  welcome  liberation 
from  the  loneliness  of  the  human  spirit!  Light, 
the  material  agent,  finds  its  way  to  the  confines  of 
creation,  and  light,  the  immaterial  agent,  ascends  to 
God  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye.  Light  answers  to 
light,  and  spirit  to  spirit.  How  near,  how  illumi- 
nating, how  vitalizing  must  God  become  to  any  man 
who  has  received  the  divine  life  according  to  his 
m,easure  and  who  opens  his  whole  being  to  the  light 
which  perpetually  radiates  from  the  divine  Person- 
ality ! 

31 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

We  know  life  as  a  fact  in  our  own  spirits  immedi- 
ately, and  why  may  we  not  know  it  as  renewed  and 
sustained  directly  by  God?  If  we  cannot  define  it 
satisfactorily,  we  may  yet  know  it  truly,  its  origin, 
its  nature,  its  development.  We  can  know  it  as  the 
thing  that  distinguishes  us,  that  enables  us  to  shine 
with  the  light  of  life,  that  relates  us  to  other  spirit- 
ual beings,  that  enables  us  to  fill  out  God's  thought 
of  us  when  He  says,  the  spirit  of  man  is  the  candle 
of  the  Lord. 

Can  we  see  the  unity  of  John's  universe  amid  its 
diversity,  matter,  natural  law,  natural  life,  spiritual 
life,  all  coming  directly  from  the  one  Source?  John 
begins  with  a  divine  Person  Who  creates  matter, 
establishes  law,  confers  life.  He  then  ushers  us  into 
human  history  by  means  of  a  particular  man  who  is 
sent  by  God  to  bear  witness  concerning  the  light. 
The  thread  of  unity  shows  more  plainly  as  he  pro- 
ceeds to  develop  the  direct  personal  agency  which 
is  as  apparent  in  the  Gospel  as  it  is  essential  in  the 
life  of  men. 

After  the  initial  Being  is  conceived  in  terms  of 
balanced  personality  beyond  the  confines  of  the  ma- 
terial universe ;  after  material  things  are  made  and 
held  in  harmony  under  natural  law;  after  life  is 
known  as  a  new  fact,  which  is  explained  by  means 
of  its  origin ;  a  divinely-appointed  man  appears  sud- 
denly like  a  glowing  meteor  in  a  star-lit  sky. 
"There  came  a  man  sent  from  God  whose  name  was 
John."  This  one  man  is  singled  out  and  called  upon 
to  stand  alone  in  the  world  and  in  history,  and  so 
also  in  the  thought  of  each  individual,  though  he 
32 


The  Self-Revealing  God 

is  related  to  all  history  and  all  the  world.  Back  to 
God  we  are  borne  once  more,  for  this  man  is  di- 
rectly and  personally  related  to  the  initial  Being. 
He  enters  upon  the  scene  of  life  and  action  to  ful- 
fill a  specific  work  as  God's  representative  among 
men. 

He  is  sent  by  God  and  even  named  by  Him,  as 
Luke  tells  us.  Unlike  other  men  in  his  ascetic 
habit  and  moral  temper,  he  is  yet  no  moral  freak 
or  religious  enthusiast,  but  a  chosen  witness  of  the 
Divine,  above  and  beyond  the  cosmic  order,  in  his- 
tory also,  and  especially  in  the  human  heart,  which 
becomes  the  realm  of  divine  life  through  repentance 
and  faith.  He  bears  witness  concerning  the  light 
which  is  the  highest  form  of  life  in  the  soul.  This 
is  the  true  light  which  we  see  in  its  perfection  in 
the  Word,  the  light  that  lighteth  every  man  who 
comes  into  the  world. 

John's  special  mission  is  the  cultivation  of  faith  in 
men  in  order  that  they  may  claim  as  their  own  the 
divine  life  and  enjoy  the  true  light.  Men  should 
know  God  not  only  as  Creator,  not  only  as  a  logical 
implication  of  thought,  but  individually  and  person- 
ally. Every  man  must  be  singled  out  before  God. 
A  new  day  has  dawned  and  a  brighter  one  than  the 
world  has  ever  seen  before.  John  is  not  the  light, 
but  only  a  witness  to  declare  Him,  so  that  every  man 
may  know  the  One  Who  already  illuminates  each 
soul  and  Who  offers  to  each  a  higher  potency  of  life 
and  light.  Every  man  is  open  to  God  in  his  soul- 
life,  but  many  men  are  only  half-conscious  of  this 
fact;  they  fail  to  know  with  practical  certainty  the 

33 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

divine  source  of  their  own  being;  they  even  fail 
to  know  Him  Who  is  in  the  world,  Who  created  the 
world,  and  Who  is  always  unknown  to  men  of  the 
world.  This  agnosticism  of  unbelief  may  even  pos- 
sess those  who  profess  to  know  God.  He  came  unto 
His  own  and  they  that  were  His  own  received  Him 
not.  They  forfeited  their  privilege  of  welcoming 
Him  into  their  own  lives,  the  visible  Church,  Jewish 
history,  and  all  history.  But  as  many  as  received 
Him,  to  them  gave  He  the  right  to  become  the  chil- 
dren of  God.  His  gift  reflects  Himself.  Such  is 
the  fruit  of  faith  in  Christ  and  the  glory  of  the  new 
day  that  has  dawned. 

The  believer  is  a  new  and  better  type  of  man, 
born  into  a  new  life  and  a  new  world  by  means  of 
a  birth  that  is  not  physical,  but  spiritual,  not  the  re- 
sult of  human  will  and  agency,  but  the  product  of 
the  direct  action  of  the  will  of  God.  The  cause 
assigned  is  equal  to  the  effect,  and  religion  keeps 
company  with  reason.  Thus,  and  thus  only,  could 
a  man  enter  into  this  new  and  personal  relation  to 
God  and  really  become  a  newly-constituted  and 
newly-organized  being  in  whom  the  will  of  God  is 
central  and  supreme.  Thus,  any  man  can  come  into 
this  direct  personal  relation  to  God.  Thus  every 
man  is  called  upon  to  actualize  this  relation  in  order 
to  realize  his  best  life.  Otherwise,  his  life  must  be 
mechanical  and  deistic,  and  only  thus  can  it  become 
personal  and  theistic.  The  believer  comes  to  God 
not  through  the  testimony  of  nature  or  moral  law, 
but  through  the  Christ  to  Whom  God's  representa- 
tive man  bears  his  personal  testimony.  The  be- 
34 


The  Self- Revealing  God 

liever  may,  in  turn,  become  one  of  God's  representa- 
tives, sent  by  Him  and  standing  next  to  Him,  having 
a  disposition  to  obey  Him  and  a  purpose  to  repre- 
sent Him  truly;  and  so  the  making  of  a  believer 
is  the  making  of  a  man  who  knows  God  in  Christ 
by  direct  knowledge  and  personal  experience. 

John,  the  individual  man,  the  particular  person, 
divinely  chosen  and  divinely  sent,  becomes  God's 
representative,  who  testifies  of  the  divine  light  and 
life,  not  as  a  thing,  but  as  a  truth  of  personal  quality 
and  content.  The  man  and  his  message  occupy  the 
personal  plane  in  making  known  the  divine  Word  to 
beings  who  may  rise  to  this  same  level  of  life.  John 
is  a  religious  leader  and  not  a  mere  formalist,  a 
man  sent  by  God  to  represent  Him,  a  man  who  an- 
nounces the  coming  Christ,  a  man  who  invites  all 
men  to  know  God  in  a  personal  way. 


35 


CHAPTER  II. 
The  Incarnate  Word. 

Human  agency  is  associated  with  the  divine  when 
God  enters  human  history  in  the  Person  of  Jesus 
Christ.  The  man  who  announces  the  coming  of 
Christ  has  been  so  well  disciplined  in  spiritual  life 
that  he  in  no  way  obscures  our  view  of  Him  by 
obtrusive  self-exaltation.  He  freely  declares  that 
he  is  not  the  light,  but  only  God's  witness  to  the 
Light,  for  he  well  knows  men  have  often  lost  sight 
of  God  when  they  have  fixed  their  eyes  upon  His 
messengers.  The  false  teacher,  willing  to  exalt 
himself,  waits  for  the  plaudits  of  the  people,  and 
this  one  mark  serves  to  distinguish  him  in  all  ages. 
If  God  is  to  manifest  Himself  among  men  as  a 
Person,  He  should  be  announced  by  a  person,  that 
men,  as  persons,  may  welcome  Him.  Thus  the  mind 
of  the  apostle  moves  freely  on  this  high  table-land 
of  personal  life  and  reaches  conclusions  which  on 
one  side  appear  to  be  the  outcome  of  constructive 
reasoning,  and  on  the  other,  the  result  of  direct 
revelation. 

The  door  of  entrance  into  human  history  stands 
wide  open  before  the  Christ,  since  the  true  light 
reaches  every  man  as  a  universal  fact  and  a  uni- 
versal truth.  Every  man  is  an  object  of  that  light 
which  continues  to  shine  upon  him.  Moreover,  the 
true  Light  is  distinguishable  from  all  other  real  or 
pretended  lights  by  Its  origin.  Its  nature,  and  Its 

36 


The  Incarnate  Word 

universality.  All  men  are  adapted  to  the  true 
light,  and  this  light  is  adapted  to  all  men,  and  hence 
a  direct  relation  already  exists  between  the  Christ 
and  all  men. 

The  divine  deahng  with  the  world  can  be  ex- 
pressed only  in  terms  of  personality,  for  the  Word 
was  in  the  world  as  its  life  and  light  from  the  dawn 
of  creation,  and  yet  the  world  of  men  failed  to  know 
Him  as  a  person.  Even  His  own  chosen  people  be- 
came so  enamored  of  the  external  forms  of  their 
religion  that  they  failed  to  recognize  Him  when  He 
came  to  them  in  His  true  character  and  in  visible 
form.  They  attributed  to  Him  another  character 
unlike  His  own,  and  thus  He  was  unwelcome  to 
them.  To  them  He  was  not  divine  and  not  God. 
But  to  others  who  were  not  bound  by  tradition  and 
religious  forms  and  ecclesiasticism,  and  who  re- 
ceived Him  in  His  rightful  character,  to  them  He 
gave  the  right  to  become  the  children  of  God.  His 
deity  could  not  be  suppressed  in  the  world  among 
men.  There  is  a  divine  result  accruing  to  those 
who  receive  Him  for  what  He  really  is,  and  thus 
opening  the  way  to  accept  Him  for  all  He  can  be 
to  them.  The  human  will  touches  the  divine  will, 
and  the  divine  will  touches  the  human  will,  and 
God  appears  in  human  life  and  in  human  history, 
not  as  their  contradiction,  but  their  completion,  not 
alone  because  sin  had  entered  both,  but  because  God 
had  promised  to  enter  both  even  before  the  founda- 
tion of  the  world,  not  as  an  incident  and  after- 
thought, but  as  a  divine  purpose  as  deep  as  life 
itself. 

37 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

"And  the  Word  became  flesh,  and  dwelt  among 
us  (and  we  beheld  his  glory,  glory  as  of  the  only 
begotten  from  the  Father),  full  of  grace  and  truth." 
The  associate  of  God  became  the  associate  of  men. 
If  He  belonged  in  the  divine  nature,  He  belonged 
also  in  human  nature;  if  He  is  the  perfection  of 
deity,  He  is  also  the  perfection  of  humanity ;  if  He 
becomes  visible  to  men  and  mingles  with  them,  it 
is  as  the  only  begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace 
and  truth.  Human  eyes  behold  Him  and  distinguish 
His  glory,  veiled  and  subdued,  but  still  the  glory 
of  God. 

The  doctrine  of  the  Word  which  is  so  essential 
to  the  proper  understanding  of  the  fourth  Gospel 
may  be  gathered  up  in  terms  that  reflect  the  Gospel 
record.  It  is  the  doctrine  of  a  divine  Person,  Who 
is  pre-existent,  Who  is  the  associate  of  God,  Who 
is  God  in  His  very  nature  and  being  and  method  of 
life,  Who  is  the  agent  of  creation  and  the  source  of 
life  and  light.  Who  enters  into  the  world  and  human 
history  announced  by  a  man  whom  God  sent  to  per- 
form this  task  and  to  prepare  men  for  His  coming 
by  an  appeal  to  their  conscience  and  their  religious 
sense.  Who  assumes  human  form  and  accepts  human 
associates  that  He  may  be  to  them  the  channel  of 
grace  and  truth.  God's  law  could  be  given  by  Mo- 
ses and  written  on  stone,  but  God's  grace  and  truth 
cannot  be  separated  from  God  Himself,  and  hence 
their  only  channel  of  entrance  into  human  life  and 
human  history  is  through  Jesus  Girist.  Such  is 
the  apostle's  doctrine  of  the  Word. 

38 


The  Incarnate  Word 

The  incarnation  of  the  Word  is  stated  as  a  his- 
toric fact.  Great  as  this  fact  must  be,  John  has 
comprehended  it,  and  places  upon  it  its  true  value. 
History  inspires  his  faith  and  shapes  his  philosophy, 
and  not  the  reverse.  The  history  he  writes  and  the 
truth  he  teaches  have  had  their  proper  effect  on  his 
own  mind. 

The  incarnation  is  a  distinctly  Christian  con- 
ception that  is  fundamental  in  gospel  teaching  and 
religious  thought.  The  Word  enters  a  human  body 
in  association  with  a  human  spirit  and  thus  lives 
a  human  life,  if  we  may  so  speak,  in  order  to  actual- 
ize the  human  type  and  ideal,  the  only  possible  way 
to  fill  out  in  its  perfection  the  divine  thought  of  hu- 
man life  and  character  and  personality.  No  angel 
could  become  a  man,  and  man  had  failed  under 
favorable  conditions,  and  after  he  had  yielded  to  evil 
and  suffered  from  disobedience  he  could  not  rise  to 
God's  perfect  thought  or  even  make  progress  in 
that  direction  without  a  new  increment  of  moral  en- 
ergy and  a  new  incentive  to  moral  effort.  This  new 
impulse  and  accession  of  spiritual  power  for  the 
individual  and  for  the  race  God  freely  affords  in 
the  incarnation  of  the  Word.  "The  Word  became 
flesh  and  dwelt  among  us,"  became  flesh  by  both  a 
natural  and  a  supernatural  process,  entering  the 
world  by  the  channels  of  the  race,  yet  so  that  God 
alone  is  His  Father.  John  writes,  no  doubt,  with 
complete  knovvdedge  of  the  virgin  birth  and  also  with 
as  complete  acceptance  of  the  historic  fact,  though  to 
him  the  really  significant  thing  is  Deity  in  the  form 

39 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

of  humanity,  or  humanity  associated  with  Deity  in  a 
single  life  and  personalty. 

The  Word  becomes  flesh  in  order  to  live  a  real 
human  life;  in  order  to  be  visible  to  the  eyes  of 
men;  in  order  to  answer  their  questions  and  teach 
them  the  truth  in  the  only  way  it  can  be  taught ;  in 
order  to  complete  and  perfect  His  relation  to  man- 
kind, accentuating  it  on  one  side  by  the  specific  bond 
that  is  wholly  human  and  on  the  other  wholly 
divine,  while  it  is  personal  on  both  sides,  and 
thus  from  both,  the  Word  marks  out  the  grand 
result  of  human  redemption.  In  short,  the  Word 
becomes  flesh  in  order  to  become  an  organic 
part  of  human  life  and  human  history.  The 
race  requires  a  moral  head  as  well  as  the  indi- 
vidual. As  man,  Jesus  represents  man,  for  man 
requires  a  representative  before  God,  and  also  an 
example  for  the  race,  and  especially  for  the  indi- 
vidual. If  the  unity  of  the  individual  is  ever 
achieved,  if  the  unity  of  the  multitude,  the  nation, 
and  the  race,  if  atonement  for  man  is  ever  made 
before  God,  how  can  these  ends  be  attained  except 
through  a  human  personality  as  its  instrument  and 
then  as  its  pledge  and  promise?  Even  in  His  hu- 
man form,  the  Word  abides,  being  full  of  grace  and 
truth.  He  loses  none  of  His  divine  attributes  by 
becoming  man.  He  is  the  Word  still,  not  being  con- 
ditioned from  without,  the  same  divine  Person  Who 
appears  beyond  the  cosmic  order  and  Who  now  en- 
ters human  life  to  the  end  that  men  may  enter  the 
divine  life. 

40 


The  Incarnate  Word 

John  simply  seeks  to  convey  to  other  minds  his 
knowledge  of  the  Word,  a  knowledge  which  came  to 
him  by  direct  revelation,  communicating  to  him 
what  he  could  not  otherwise  know,  by  spiritual  en- 
duement  enlightening  and  uplifting  his  natural 
powers,  and  by  personal  contact  with  Jesus  during 
those  three  wonderful  years  of  divine  instruction, 
followed  by  many  years  of  testimony  and  medita- 
tion. He  masters  his  theme  and  measures  his  doc- 
trine with  an  ease  and  confidence  that  convince  us 
without  additional  argument  that  he  is  aided  by  the 
Spirit  at  every  point.  We  are  impressed  by  the 
originality  of  his  conceptions,  the  accuracy  of  his 
statements,  and  the  symmetry  of  his  system  of 
thought,  all  of  which  are  plainly  implied  if  not 
plainly  stated.  In  the  luminous  language  of  the  Rev. 
Henry  M.  King:  "John,  guided  by  the  divine  Spirit, 
declared  Christ  to  be  the  true,  living,  personal 
Logos,  possessor  of  creative  power  and  infinite 
wisdom,  God  and  Savior  in  one  person,  God  man- 
ifest in  the  flesh.  ...  He  gathered  up  all  that 
was  true  in  revelation  and  all  that  was  highest  and 
best  in  philosophy  and  centered  it  in  Christ,  the  Son 
of  God,  the  divine  Logos." 

John  seems  to  have  had  no  doubt  or  question  with 
reference  to  the  humanity  of  Christ.  It  required  no 
proof  other  than  His  bodily  presence.  Nor  does 
the  incarnation  bring  with  it  any  perplexing  ques- 
tion as  to  the  union  of  the  two  natures  in  the  one 
Personality.  He  had  asked  how,  and  wondered 
why,  but  his  questions  were  all  answered  when  he 
fully  apprehended  the  deity  of  Christ  and  yet  found 

41 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

no  reason  for  surrendering  His  humanity.  Here  he 
discovered  the  moral  union,  the  harmony  of  God 
and  man,  the  atonement  in  essence  and  anticipation. 
John  constructs  no  theory  of  gradual  impartation, 
as  if  to  assist  God  in  entering  the  low  portals  of 
human  life  or  to  aid  man  to  accept  a  historic  fact 
that  burdens  rationalistic  thought.  He  looks  upon 
the  incarnate  Word  as  an  ultimate  fact,  and  hence 
he  never  attempts  to  explain  the  incarnation  and 
never  doubts  its  reality.  Here  he  touches  a  basal 
truth  and  on  this  he  rests  secure.  He  records  a  great 
historic  fact  and  states  a  great  Christian  doctrine 
in  a  single  sentence,  ''the  Word  became  flesh." 

Perhaps  we  have  been  impressed  with  the  idea  of 
being  and  the  idea  of  becoming,  which  we  find  in 
the  first  chapter  of  the  fourth  Gospel.  John  begins 
with  being,  but  he  finds  room  for  becoming.  One 
of  the  most  wonderful  things  about  a  man  is  his 
power  to  become.  Those  who  received  the  true 
light,  to  them  He  gave  the  right  to  become  chil- 
dren of  God,  a  definite  and  well-grounded  advance. 
The  Word  became  flesh,  something  more  than  He 
was.  "He  that  cometh  after  me,"  says  John,  the 
witness,  "is  become  before  me."  He  transcends  His 
human  forerunner.  Thus  being  is  not  fixed  in 
eternal,  unchangeable  existence,  but  by  an  internal 
process  attains  to  a  new  life  with  new  relations  and 
new  reality.  This  process  may  be  more  easily  un- 
derstood with  respect  to  man  than  in  the  case  of 
the  Word,  though  God  is  never  outdone  by  any  of 
His  creatures.  It  is  the  divine  becoming  which  is 
so  distinctly  asserted  that  costs  us  the  most  earnest 
42 


The  Incarnate  Word 

thought.  How  can  the  infinite  God  become  a  finite 
man?  How  can  a  self-existent  being  still  become 
what  He  was  not  before? 

"And  the  Word  became  flesh,"  we  are  told,  a 
continuation  of  what  has  gone  before  concerning 
man's  becoming,  a  complementary  truth,  another 
fact  of  the  same  kind,  and  without  which  the  first 
were  impossible.  God  always  leads  the  way  into 
spiritual  life  and  spiritual  liberty.  Human  nature 
ought  always  to  be  plastic  to  His  touch  and  respon- 
sive to  His  will.  Men  may  discover  God  just  behind 
matter  and  law  and  life  and  His  personal  representa- 
tives, and  no  man  can  get  very  far  away  from  Him 
without  a  deliberate  perversion  of  his  own  nature. 
The  poetic  prayer,  "Nearer,  my  God,  to  Thee,"  has 
been  anticipated  by  the  divine  approach  in  the  only 
begotten  Son,  Who  dwells  next  to  every  man  in  a 
real  humanity  of  His  own. 

John  finds  ample  room  for  a  real  humanity  and 
a  real  deity  when  the  Word  becomes  flesh.  The 
divine  glory  is  not  extinguished  nor  the  human 
nature  destroyed,  but  both  shine  in  separate  and 
united  perfection.  The  deity  of  the  Word  as  pre- 
viously declared,  continues,  while  this  new  mani- 
festation calls  forth  a  new  name,  "the  Only  Begot- 
ten from  the  Father,"  and  also  a  new  conception  of 
His  character  and  a  new  appreciation  of  His  work. 
His  divine  Sonship  is  immediately  linked  with  His 
divine  leadership  among  men.  Moses  represented 
the  law,  while  Jesus  Christ  represents  the  dispen- 
sation of  grace  and  truth.  Christ  is  the  one  great 
leader  of  humanity,  without  associate  or  successor. 

43 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

He  became  flesh,  entering  the  lower  Ufe  of  man  as 
well  as  his  higher  life.  He  respects  the  mysterious 
unity  of  human  nature,  body  and  spirit.  He  is  a 
genuine  human  being  from  its  lowest  limits  to  its 
highest  levels,  in  its  reality  and  in  its  totality.  He 
fulfills,  but  never  destroys,  human  nature.  Like- 
wise His  deity  is  as  real  as  His  humanity.  He  be- 
comes man  by  an  interior  process  of  life  that  is 
positive  and  permanent  in  its  nature  and  results. 
His  deity  is  not  degraded  or  even  limited  by  His 
humanity  save  as  it  is  thus  limited  according  to  His 
own  benevolent  purpose  and  holy  will.  The  apostle 
John  finds  no  contradiction  of  deity  in  humanity  ex- 
cept as  men  have  created  it.  Human  nature  opens 
to  God  like  any  other  part  of  creation. 

The  Apostle  John  never  plays  with  words  as  the 
symbols  of  ideas,  but  always  uses  them  to  convey 
a  knowledge  of  realities.  He  never  loses  being  in 
its  further  becoming.  Final  facts  and  fundamental 
principles  concern  him,  and  when  he  sees  the  Word 
becoming  man  he  sees  also  that  He  is  the  Son  of 
God.  John,  the  witness,  beholds  the  deity  of  the 
Word  enshrined  in  His  humanity.  He  measures 
the  One  he  precedes  and  proclaims  by  the  standard 
of  his  own  humanity  and  acknowledges  the  evident 
superiority  of  the  divine  man — a  superiority  not 
alone  of  degree,  but  also  of  kind  and  content.  He 
was  before  me  and  so  He  towers  above  me.  He 
comes  after  me  and  outmeasures  me  there.  His 
fullness  ministers  to  all  men,  myself  among  them, 
and  grace  for  grace,  not  a  line  of  beauty  anywhere 
but  attests  his  touch.     The  law  given  on  Sinai  for 

44 


The  Incarnate  Word 

the  moral  regulation  of  men  was  given  by  Moses 
and  inscribed  on  tablets  of  stone,  but  grace  and 
truth,  those  personal  principles  and  qualities,  the 
very  essentials  of  moral  being  and  becoming,  these 
are  ministered  to  men  by  Jesus  Christ.  The  moral 
law  knows  no  limit  to  its  authority,  and  in  like  man- 
ner grace  and  truth  make  their  divine  appeal  wher- 
ever there  are  moral  beings  to  answer  to  it. 

The  Word  became  flesh,  and  henceforth  the  only 
begotten  Son  reveals  God  to  men.  No  man  has 
developed  his  religious  nature  and  his  spiritual 
vision  sufficiently  to  enable  him  to  see  God  and 
comprehend  Him.  As  a  personal  being,  God  is  in- 
visible to  man,  and  hence  revelation  in  Christ  is  an 
absolute  necessity.  The  human  eye  cannot  see  God, 
Who  is  a  spirit,  and  the  human  intellect  cannot  con- 
ceive Him  or  construct  Him  like  a  character  in 
fiction.  Hence,  God  manifests  Himself  to  men  in 
the  Person  of  the  Son,  Who  assumes  human  na- 
ture and  dwells  among  men.  His  relation  of  per- 
sonal intimacy  with  the  Father  continues,  while  the 
contrasts  in  his  life  never  become  contradictions,  but 
only  serve  to  accentuate  the  higher  nature  by  means 
of  the  lower,  and  to  lead  us  to  the  apostolic  conclu- 
sion that  the  invisible  God  becomes  visible  as  we 
behold  His  glory  in  the  Person  of  Jesus  Christ. 

The  fourth  Gospel  begins  its  record  of  revelation 
as  rational  on  both  sides,  as  knowledge  conveyed  and 
as  knowledge  received,  as  truth  made  known  in 
terms  of  human  thinking  and  as  truth  apprehended 
by  the  human  mind,  as  God  revealed  in  the  incar- 
nate Word  and  God  received  in  the  humanity  of 

45 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Jesus  Christ.  Nothing  unphilosophical  or  unsci- 
entific or  irrational  regarding  realities  and  relations, 
causes  and  effects,  being  and  becoming,  has  greeted 
us,  and  we  therefore  conclude  that  the  fourth  Gos- 
pel lays  a  secure  foundation  for  the  redemption  of 
man,  his  being  and  his  becoming,  intellectual,  moral, 
and  personal,  created  in  the  image  of  God  and  ca- 
pable of  a  development  that  continually  calls  for 
the  humanity  and  the  divinity  of  the  incarnate 
Word. 

As  the  creator  of  the  v^orld  and  as  the  source  of 
life,  especially  the  higher  life  of  man,  rational, 
moral,  and  spiritual,  the  Word  bears  upon  His 
breast  the  moral  responsibility  therein  implied. 
Revelation  is  no  mere  incident  in  history,  and  the 
incarnation  no  mere  accident  and  afterthought,  but 
both  are  central,  both  enter  into  the  very  nature  of 
the  case,  both  rest  upon  the  eternal  purpose  of  a 
being  Who  is  morally  constituted  and  who  needs  no 
law  to  recall  or  re-enforce  moral  obligation. 

John's  thought  of  God  is  no  weak  accommoda- 
tion of  deity  to  humanity  on  the  one  side,  nor  on 
the  other  an  unwarranted  exaltation  of  humanity  to 
the  rank  and  estate  of  deity.  His  God  is  God  in 
deed  and  in  truth,  and  his  man  is  truly  man.  He 
knows  both  as  objective  beings  and  as  constructed 
in  his  own  thinking.  To  him  man  is  a  created  being, 
a  moral,  intellectual,  and  spiritual  being,  a  true  self- 
hood, a  person  with  the  moral  responsibility  of  a 
person,  and  with  the  prospect  and  opportunity  for 
continued  personal  development.  To  him,  God  is  a 
self-existent  being  Whose  interior  life  reveals  the 

46 


The  Incarnate  Word 

Word  in  personal  form  and  fellowship,  Who  is  the 
creator  of  the  world,  Who  enters  into  human  life 
and  human  history.  Who  comes  to  men  as  the  only 
begotten  Son,  Whose  Sonship  reflects  the  Father- 
hood of  God,  and  Whose  Person  presents  to  men 
once  for  all  the  absolute  Personality  of  God.  No 
man  hath  seen  God  at  any  time,  and  hence  the  ne- 
cessity of  divine  self-revelation.  He  is  not  subject 
to  discovery,  like  a  continent  or  a  chemical  element. 
Men  see  the  works  of  God  on  every  hand,  but  the 
Person  of  Deity,  the  gentleness  linked  with  power, 
the  love  joined  with  justice,  the  mercy  that  pities  and 
the  heart  that  forgives,  how  could  these  be  known 
unless  the  only  begotten  Son,  Who  embodies  them 
all,  comes  to  make  them  manifest  ?  And  who,  aside 
from  Him,  could  undertake  the  task  ? 

The  apostle  evidently  regards  the  Word,  Jesus 
Christ,  the  only  begotten  Son,  as  one  and  the  same 
Person.  God  and  man  are  united  in  Him,  so  that 
his  deity  and  his  humanity  are  organically  related 
and  therefore  inseparable.  This  union  knows  no 
dissolution,  but  forever  abides  as  the  secure  basi& 
of  human  hope  and  human  happiness.  Religion, 
then,  is  the  human  person  realizing  by  faith  his  re- 
lation to  this  divine  Person.  The  living  man  and 
the  whole  man  is  required  to  fulfill  the  religious  re- 
lation on  the  human  side,  for  it  takes  the  Person  of 
Christ  to  reveal  God  to  a  single  soul.  It  takes  man 
as  a  person  to  receive  God,  and  it  would  surely  be 
presumptuous  to  think  otherwise.  As  a  Person,  God 
reveals  Himself,  and  in  like  manner  man  must  re- 
spond to  Him  or  never  know  the  essential  nature  or 

47 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

revelation,  never  rise  to  the  plane  of  personal  life 
of  the  Christian  type. 

The  Word  is  dimly  visible  in  creation,  but  He  be- 
comes clearly  visible  in  Christ  with  human  form  and 
features.  We  see  Him  also  in  the  Son  in  the  rela- 
tion of  perfect  obedience  to  the  Father,  Who  owns 
and  honors  that  obedience.  This  one  divine  Person 
is  always  the  Son,  always  the  Qirist,  always  the 
Word,  and  never  other  or  less  than  these.  The 
thought  of  John  never  shrinks  and  shrivels  like  an 
autumn  leaf,  but  keeps  its  freshness  and  its  force 
because  of  its  essential  truth.  His  doctrine  of  the 
Word  is  the  doctrine  of  a  Person,  divine  in  being 
and  attributes  and  work,  Who  reveals  God  to  man, 
thus  enabling  man  to  see  God  and  also  himself  in 
his  own  personal  life  and  possibiHties,  Who  enters 
human  history  as  an  ideal,  an  example,  a  motive,  a 
mediator,  Who  abides  as  a  perpetual  Presence 
among  men  and  makes  His  perpetual  appeal  to  them 
to  welcome  Him  as  the  only  begotten  Son  Who  is 
in  the  bosom  of  the  Father  and  claims  a  place  in 
every  human  breast. 


48 


PART  II 

The  Promised  Messiah 


CHAPTER  III. 

John,  the  Inspired  Witness. 

The  divine  Word  greets  us  at  the  very  opening 
of  John's  Gospel  and  His  human  herald  enters  un- 
announced. Each  appears  without  apology  and 
with  no  other  introduction  than  a  plain  statement 
of  his  character  and  work.  Nothing  seems  to  stand 
in  the  way  of  their  coming  and  nothing  hinders  a 
clear  account  of  each.  Knowledge  is  not  confused 
nor  is  description  called  upon  to  rescue  it.  The 
Word  as  here  described  and  the  man  whom  God 
has  sent,  stand  in  a  real  relation  to  each  other.  God 
comes  close  to  man,  not  to  compel  him  to  withdraw, 
but,  on  the  contrary,  to  invite  him  to  come  close  to 
God  according  to  his  nature  and  his  ability. 

The  Word  comes  first,  and  then  John,  the  inspired 
witness.  The  self-revealing  God  must  begin  reve- 
lation as  well  as  creation.  His  personal  entrance 
into  history,  however,  is  anticipated  by  this  one  man 
who  announces  His  presence  among  men  and  His 
pubHc  appearance  at  the  beginning  of  His  pubHc 
ministry.  John,  the  inspired  witness,  steps  out  of 
the  ranks  of  the  multitude  and  even  out  of  the  pro- 
cession of  traditional  ecclesiasticism  to  meet  the 
coming  Christ  with  profound  personal  appreciation 
and  appropriate  official  recognition. 

We  may  wonder  why  this  appointed  witness  ap- 
pears so  early  in  the  first  chapter.  The  record  places 
him  where,  according  to  his  life  and  ministry,  he 
belongs.     His  knowledge  of  the  Word  fits  him  to 

49 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

be  there.  He  knows  the  Word  in  His  relative  and 
also  in  His  independent  greatness.  He  knows  His 
superiority  as  compared  with  Moses  and  the  law. 
He  knows  His  pre-existence  and  His  pre-eminence. 
He  knows  Him  as  the  promised  Messiah  and  even 
as  the  Son  of  God  in  the  higher  sense,  and  all  these 
things  he  needed  to  know  before  he  could  rightly 
represent  Him  or  candidly  meet  the  questions  and 
doubts  of  men.  His  knowledge  of  the  Word  is  be- 
yond what  we  would  expect  at  this  stage  of  reve- 
lation, yet  it  was  all  necessary  in  order  that  he  might 
really  welcome  Him  and  rightly  introduce  Him  to 
men.  The  unreal  is  inadmissible  in  the  Gospel, 
where  nothing  is  said  or  done  merely  for  effect,  but 
where  all  things  work  together  in  fulfillment  of  the 
divine  plan.  The  inspired  witness  and  the  divine 
Word  are  related  in  thought  and  life,  and  this  re- 
lation empowers  and  directs  the  testimony  of  John. 
The  following  subjects  are  considered  in  their 
order :  John  and  the  Word,  John  and  the  Jews,  John 
and  Jesus,  John  and  his  disciples,  that  group  of 
earnest  men  who  begin  at  once  to  gather  about  the 
new  leader.  If  John  knows  the  Word  as  divine,  he 
knows  the  Word  as  incarnate.  We  should  note  that 
John  has  a  right  conception  of  Jesus  from  the  very 
first  and  bore  testimony  to  Him  before  he  saw  Him. 
He  knew  Who  he  was  looking  for  and  the  one  Per- 
son Who  ansv/ered  to  his  ideal.  Hence  his  testi- 
mony broke  forth  in  those  ever-memorable  w^ords 
when  the  two  met  in  public,  official  recognition,  just 
the  day  after  John  had  given  an  account  of  himself 
and  his  work  to  the  Jerusalem  Jews. 

50 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 

The  doctrine  of  the  Word  prepares  us  as  it  did 
John,  the  witness,  and  John,  the  apostle,  for  all  that 
follows  in  the  fourth  Gospel.  With  a  true  concep- 
tion of  God  in  His  absolute  life  and  in  His  relation 
to  the  world,  we  are  prepared  to  proceed  with  that 
wonderful  history  that  opens  the  door  to  all  real  re- 
ligion and  all  true  philosophy.  The  divine  strand 
never  fails  or  changes  color,  but  the  human  thread 
comes  more  prominently  into  the  field  of  vision.  The 
inspired  testimony  of  God's  chosen  witness  is  elab- 
orated and  its  effects  fully  displayed  as  men  are  per- 
mitted to  see  God  in  history  as  He  now  appears  in 
the  Person  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Neither  the  apostle  nor  the  witness  evinces  any 
fear  with  reference  to  the  new  Leader  and  the  new 
religion.  They  raise  no  question  as  to  the  manner 
in  which  the  divine  Word  should  appear  in  human 
form  and  historic  relations.  They  have  no  fear  for 
the  honor  and  dignity  of  the  central  Figure,  but 
permit  Him  to  step  upon  the  common  soil  and  cross 
the  lowly  threshold  of  peasant  Hfe  in  Palestine  with 
none  of  the  accessories  of  greatness.  He  is  an- 
nounced by  John,  the  inspired  witness,  and  permit- 
ted to  win  His  way  by  the  force  of  His  own  per- 
sonality. We  may  wonder  why  He  does  not  enlist 
existing  agencies  and  organizations  as  the  only 
possible  way  to  reach  the  world  and  so  to  save  it. 
Surely  His  task  is  too  great  for  accomplishment 
without  the  aid  of  great  men  and  great  institutions. 
But  if  this  be  our  thought,  we  are  doomed  to  dis- 
appointment. Not  masses,  but  individuals,  not 
movements,  but  men,  not  organization,  but  appre- 

51 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

ciation,  mark  the  first  efforts  of  Jesus  to  win  the 
world  to  Himself. 

John  reveals  his  character  as  a  competent  witness 
by  his  public  preaching  and  his  work  of  baptism. 
He  gives  himself  to  his  task  as  though  he  thought 
it  was  worthy  of  his  best  and  his  all.  No  mere 
performance  occupies  his  mind,  but  a  cause  to  which 
he  is  committed  by  personal  conviction,  by  public 
advocacy,  and  by  a  sacred  ordinance.  He  is  no 
echo,  but  a  voice ;  a  voice  that  proceeds  from  the 
center  of  his  soul,  a  voice  that  proclaims  an  inde- 
pendent message  fresh  from  God.  He  is  a  stern 
ascetic  from  the  wilderness,  a  preacher  of  righteous- 
ness, a  prophet,  and  more  than  a  prophet.  He  is 
not  a  scribe  nor  a  priest  nor  an  ecclesiastic,  yet  he  is 
God's  chosen  witness,  a  real  man  with  a  real  mis- 
sion, who  died  in  the  cause  of  truth  and  who  lived 
to  declare  a  Savior,  Whose  life  and  death  brought 
salvation  to  all  mankind. 

No  wonder  his  work  awakened  the  interest  of  the 
people  and  even  compelled  the  attention  of  the  offi- 
cial leaders  of  Judaism.  The  new  doctrine  might 
conflict  with  the  old  order  of  worship  and  even  the 
whole  Jewish  system.  Was  he  advocating  a  new 
order  and  a  new  system?  The  question  is  too  im- 
portant to  be  neglected,  and  official  representatives 
are  sent  to  inquire  from  the  man  whom  God  had 
sent,  "Who  art  thou?"  For  the  first  time  the  new 
religion  and  the  old  come  face  to  face,  the  new  in 
its  ordinary  course  of  expression  and  appeal,  and 
the  old  in  questioning  and  doubt  and  self-defense. 

52 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 

Must  men  ask  John  who  he  is?  Can  they  have 
no  opinion  of  their  own?  Is  he  not  a  religious 
teacher  and  leader  who  is  true  to  the  history  and 
the  spirit  of  Judaism?  Who  now  announces  the 
Messiah  with  the  same  assurance  that  characterizes 
the  prophets  of  old  ?  But  every  man  ought  to  know 
himself  better  than  any  other  man  knows  him,  and 
be  better  able  to  define  his  duty  and  declare  his  doc- 
trine. He  is  not  the  expected  Christ,  the  first  mis- 
conception likely  to  arise  in  that  expectant  age. 
Nor  is  he  Elijah,  the  rugged  Tishbite,  though  he 
breathes  the  same  spirit,  nor  yet  the  prophet  of 
whom  Moses  had  spoken  and  whom  they  should 
know  was  none  other  than  the  promised  Messiah. 
Not  content  with  a  negative  answer,  they  ask  for 
a  positive  statement  of  his  character  and  work.  His 
idea  of  himself  has  already  been  formulated :  "I  am 
the  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness,  Make 
straight  the  way  of  the  Lord,  as  said  Isaiah  the 
prophet."  Himself  a  product  of  their  religious 
history,  his  work  is  a  fulfillment  of  their  ancient 
prophecy.  He  prepares  the  way  of  the  Lord  by 
preaching  righteousness  and  heralds  His  coming  by 
public  announcement.  His  message  has  more  sig- 
nificance for  men  than  his  own  personality,  for  a 
voice  dies  away  while  the  message  remains,  having 
been  transmitted  to  the  minds  and  hearts  of  men. 

How  wonderfully  this  leader  leads  us  into  the 
unconventional  and  the  unseen !  How  admirably  he 
frees  himself  from  the  thraldom  of  tradition  and 
walks  out  under  the  open  sky  of  spiritual  life  and 
liberty !    How  confidently  he  points  to  the  incarnate 

53 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Word  and  bids  us  find  God  among  men !  Worthy 
forerunner  of  Him  Who  makes  men  free  indeed ! 
Worthy  herald  of  the  coming  Christ!  Worthy 
prophet  of  a  glorious  future  that  bears  within  it 
the  personal  presence  of  God ! 

The  preaching  and  the  baptism  of  John  are  alike 
corrective  and  constructive,  the  rebuke  of  sin  and 
the  enforcement  of  righteousness.  He  is  a  religious 
leader  rather  than  a  moral  reformer,  and  adapts 
himself  to  prophecy  and  history.  He  prepares  men 
for  the  coming  of  the  Christ  by  restoring  the  thought 
of  direct  dealing  with  God,  so  often  lost  and  ob- 
scured by  the  very  means  appointed  to  perpetuate 
it.  Why  baptizest  thou,  if  thou  art  not  the  Christ 
nor  Elijah,  nor  the  prophet?  This  is  the  real  ques- 
tion that  calls  forth  the  real  answer  to  their  inquiry. 
John  knows  the  worth  of  his  water  baptism,  which 
he  performs  with  definite  purpose  and  religious  sig- 
nificance. His  work  is  done  in  view  of  the  One 
Who  is  already  mingling  with  the  people  and  to 
Whom,  as  his  superior,  John  confesses  that  he  is 
not  worthy  to  render  service  of  the  most  menial 
kind.  His  authority  is  derived.  His  baptism  looks 
forward  and  not  backward  for  its  vindication.  It 
is  organically  related  to  the  immediate  future  and 
finds  its  explanation  in  the  coming  One,  Whom  John 
was  sent  to  proclaim. 

The  sight  of  Jesus  calls  forth  John's  testimony 
which  may  seem  to  us  like  a  fixed  formula,  but  which 
was  to  him  a  fresh  and  living  truth ;  a  testimony  that 
harmonized  with  the  apostle's  conception  of  the 
Word;  a  testimony  that  is  both  prophecy  and  ful- 

54 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 

fillment — fulfillment,  for  the  Messiah  is  here  pointed 
out  by  one  who  knows  Him  as  such;  prophecy,  for 
it  contemplates  a  racial  redemption.  A  single  sen- 
tence suffices  to  announce  the  Savior  of  the  world, 
to  characterize  Him  and  to  awaken  hope  in  the 
human  heart.  ''Behold,  the  Lamb  of  God,  that 
taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world." 

This  man,  sent  by  God  to  bear  witness  concerning 
the  person  and  work  of  Jesus,  experiences  no  hard- 
ship, and  exhibits  no  hesitancy  in  testifying  to  His 
Messiahship.  His  expression  is  spontaneous,  spring- 
ing from  a  soul  consecrated  to  its  task,  sublime  in 
form  and  content,  satisfactory  to  Jesus  as  true,  and 
sufficient  to  arrest  the  attention  of  every  one  who 
hears  the  inspired  announcement.  John  sees  in 
Jesus,  "the  Lamb  of  God,"  an  expressive  symbol  to 
the  Jewish  mind,  accustomed  to  regard  the  sacrifice 
as  the  essential  element  in  religion — "that  taketh 
away  the  sin  of  the  world,"  an  explanation  for  Jew 
and  Gentile  alike,  and  personally  interesting  to  every 
man — a  mighty  effect  produced  by  an  adequate 
cause,  the  taking  away  of  the  sin  of  the  world  by 
a  sacrifice  God  Himself  provides. 

No  room  is  left  for  mistaken  identity,  for  John 
identifies  Jesus  as  the  One  Who  comes  after  him. 
Who  is  greater  than  His  forerunner  and  Who  was 
before  him.  "This  is  He,"  this  is  the  Messiah  of 
prophecy  and  the  Savior  of  all  men.  John's  knowl- 
edge of  Jesus  is  not  human  alone,  "I  knew  Him 
not,"  but  God-given  also,  with  a  sign  for  confirma- 
tion, a  sign  for  John  which  was  also  a  characteristic 
event  in  the  life  of  Jesus.    'T  have  beheld  the  Spirit 

55 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

descending  as  a  dove  out  of  heaven;  and  it  abode 
upon  Him."  Spiritual  facts  are  made  manifest  to 
this  man,  whose  duty  it  is  to  manifest  to  Israel, 
Jesus  as  the  promised  Christ.  The  previously  ap- 
pointed sign  supplies  the  lack  of  John's  personal 
knowledge  and  prepares  him  to  note  the  divine  iden- 
tification which  completes  the  chain  of  evidence. 

Men  who  propose  to  build  up  a  religion  apart 
from  God  as  though  the  soul  of  man  were  sufficient 
for  itself,  as  though  the  divine  must  be  eliminated 
until  the  human  is  convinced,  as  though  the  mind 
cannot  act  freely  unless  it  acts  by  itself  alone — such 
men  discredit  the  divine,  they  doubt  God.  They 
believe  in  themselves,  and  yet  when  we  consider  the 
case,  we  find  that  they  accept  themselves  only  in  a 
limited  sense.  Unlike  John,  they  do  not  seek  the 
divine  assistance  and  confirmation,  nor  do  they  have 
the  settled  convictions  of  John  or  the  knowledge  that 
is  so  true  that  it  is  always  true  and  true  for  all 
men.  Real  leaders  and  spiritual  liberators,  men  who 
tell  us  of  God's  coming  in  history,  men  who  point 
out  our  opportunities,  are  men  who  accept  the  di- 
vine testimony  as  the  final  confirmation  of  faith. 

Do  we  wonder  that  John  offers  himself  as  a  com- 
petent witness  ?  His  human  knowledge  has  a  divine 
confirmation  and  completion  and  he  testifies  with 
perfect  confidence  that  Jesus  is  "the  Lamb  of  God," 
that  "He  baptizes  with  the  Holy  Spirit,"  that  "He  is 
the  Son  of  God."  He  is  not  in  doubt  respecting  the 
Person  in  question,  he  is  not  mistaken  concerning 
His  character  and  work,  he  is  not  overpowered  by 
the  magnitude  of  the  issue,  but  offers  his  testimony 

56 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 

in  language  that  reflects  the  clearness  of  his  own 
conception,  the  conviction  of  his  own  mind,  and  the 
comprehensiveness  of  his  own  knowledge. 

From  such  testimony  we  must  expect  an  effect 
that  is  worthy  of  its  cause.  There  is  less  waste  of 
energy  in  the  spiritual  than  in  the  natural  world. 
The  cry  of  the  soul  reaches  the  ear  of  God,  and 
shall  it  not  affect  the  heart  of  man?  John,  the  in- 
spired witness,  and  Jesus,  the  Christ — can  we  stop 
here  ?  Does  knowing  and  being  stop  with  these  two 
intelligences,  these  two  active  agents?  It  cannot 
be.  Spirit  speaks  to  spirit  in  its  own  language  and 
on  its  own  level  of  life.  Two  inquirers  appear. 
Their  minds  are  awakened,  they  become  believers, 
but  not  without  conferring  with  Jesus  and  learning 
of  Him  for  themselves.  Religion  is  part  faith  and 
part  knowledge.  At  His  humble  dwelling  place 
they  conclude  that  Jesus  is  the  Messiah  and  are 
ready  to  tell  others  of  their  faith  and  knowledge. 
Other  inquirers  came  and  one  at  least  reaches  John's 
conclusion,  ''This  is  the  Son  of  God,"  cast  in  the 
form  of  direct  address,  "Thou  art  the  Son  of  God." 
Jesus  accepts  the  statement  as  true,  and  Nathanael 
receives  the  confirmation  of  his  faith  and  his  knowl- 
edge as  the  psychological  condition  of  spiritual  life 
and  development.  Religion  is  an  open  door  and 
already  he  is  promised  further  knowledge  in  the 
line  of  his  present  vision. 

Nathanael  comes  to  his  own  conclusion  by  his 
own  method.  To  him,  Jesus'  knowledge  of  his  inner 
religious  life  proved  the  divinity  of  Christ  and  His 

57 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

spiritual  leadership,  "Thou  art  the  King  of  Israel." 
But  we  must  remember  that  Nathanael  is  an  Israel- 
ite indeed,  in  whom  is  no  guile.  Here  is  an  honest 
man,  a  real  man,  a  man  who  had  lived  up  to  the 
best  opportunity  God  had  given  him,  and  hence  he 
was  ready  to  receive  the  Christ  in  His  true  char- 
acter at  the  very  first  interview. 

Such  are  the  first  human  responses  to  the  first 
manifestation  of  the  Word  in  His  human  form. 
Such  are  the  beginnings  of  Christian  life  and  Chris- 
tian history.  That  is  a  sacred  place  where  God 
meets  men  and  men  meet  God  in  private  converse. 
We,  too,  may  find  that  sacred  place.  We,  too,  may 
linger  there.  We  may  meet  God  in  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ,  not  fearing  to  look  on  the  face  of  His 
Anointed  nor  even  to  be  regarded  by  eyes  so  pure 
while  yet  so  merciful. 

Five  distinct  points  in  John's  testimony  corres- 
pond closely  with  a  like  number  in  the  teaching  of 
the  Apostle  John  concerning  the  person  and  office 
of  Christ. 

1.  John  declares  the  presence  among  the  people 
of  the  promised  Messiah. 

2.  He  identifies  Jesus  as  the  One  to  Whom  he 
bears  witness  by  divine  direction. 

3.  He  points  to  the  divine  character  and  the 
sacrificial  work  of  Jesus. 

4.  He  affirms  the  fulfillment  of  the  sign  by  which 
Jesus  was  to  be  known  to  him  as  the  Messiah. 

5.  His  testimony  had  its  effect  upon  men  in 
bringing  them  to  Christ. 

58 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 

According  to  the  apostle's  statement  concerning 
the  person  and  office  of  Christ,  as  formulated  by 
the  Rev.  Wm.  Arnold  Stevens : 

''1.  He  was  the  anointed  King  of  Israel — the 
Son  of  God. 

"2.  He  had  had  a  pre-existence ;  He  was  from 
heaven. 

"3.     He  was  to  rule  with  justice. 

''4.     He  was  to  be  a  Savior. 

"5.     He  was  to  bestow  the  Holy  Spirit." 

These  two  summaries  agree  in  fact  and  in  doc- 
trine. John,  the  apostle,  and  John,  the  witness, 
have  essentially  the  same  conception  of  Christ  and 
breathe  alike  the  breath  of  personal  devotion  to 
Him.  H  we  are  in  doubt  respecting  the  words  to 
be  attributed  to  each,  we  are  not  in  doubt  concern- 
ing the  doctrine  they  both  have  taught.  John,  the 
inspired  witness,  standing  at  the  beginning  of  the 
Christian  order,  agrees  with  John,  the  apostle,  who 
stands  at  the  summit  of  New  Testament  teaching. 

John,  the  man  whom  God  sent,  exhibits  the  pos- 
itive virtues  of  a  religious  leader.  He  looks  upon 
men  as  beings  who  become.  As  an  individual,  a 
man  may  become  a  better  individual,  not  only  de- 
veloping like  a  flower,  but  becoming  a  better  type 
of  man.  His  character  may  change  to  the  very 
center.  He  may  actually  rise  in  the  scale  of  being, 
ever  becoming  more  reasonable,  more  responsive  to 
moral  obligation,  more  religious  as  he  adopts  higher 
ideals  and  yields  to  the  impulse  of  higher  motives. 

On  the  material  level,  becoming  can  mean  no  more 
than  change  of  form,  as  when  ice  becomes  water, 

59 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  water  becomes  vapor.  The  change  does  not 
affect  the  substance  itself,  but  only  the  form  it 
takes,  and  any  number  of  these  transformations 
leaves  the  original  element  unchanged  as  to  its  na- 
ture. So,  also,  on  the  lower  levels  of  life,  the 
changes  we  observe  bring  us  back  eventually  to  the 
same  fact,  as  when  the  seed  germinates  and  grows 
and  produces  seed  again.  The  animal  grows  to 
maturity  and  reproduces  itself,  and  here  it  finds  its 
limit  of  becoming  over  which  it  has  never  been 
known  to  pass. 

In  the  realm  of  personality,  we  find  a  real  prog- 
ress, a  real  becoming,  so  that  being  becomes  other 
and  more  than  it  was  intellectually,  morally,  and 
spiritually,  and  this  process  of  being  and  becoming 
calls  for  a  spiritual,  moral,  and  intellectual  leader- 
ship. The  first  carries  the  emphasis,  but  the  other 
two  are  involved  as  elements  of  the  undivided  and 
indivisible  personality.  Forces  on  his  own  level  of 
life  call  out  the  forces  of  his  own  being.  Forces 
above  him  must  lift  and  liberate  him  if  he  is  ever  to 
rise.  Mechanical  forces  and  chemical  forces  and 
life  forces  below  the  personal  plane  cannot  call  forth 
his  powers  as  a  self-conscious  and  self-determining 
being.  Persons  appeal  to  him  as  a  person  and  this 
personal  appeal  constitutes  the  very  essence  of  re- 
ligious leadership. 

As  a  religious  leader,  John  takes  account  of  sin 
and  points  to  the  remedy  by  which  it  can  be  com- 
pletely eradicated  from  the  human  heart.  Sin  is 
not  proved  or  defined  or  surreptitiously  introduced. 
It  is  regarded  as  a  universal  fact,  revealed  by  the 
60 


John,  the  Inspired  Witness 

law  and  the  individual  conscience.  Atonement  must 
be  made  for  sin  in  order  to  remove  it  from  the 
spirit  as  condemnation  and  as  bias  to  evil  and  in 
order  that  the  soul  may  enter  into  right  relation  to 
God  and  be  what  it  ought  to  be  and  so  become  what 
it  is  capable  of  becoming.  The  religious  leader  re- 
quires a  clear  consciousness  of  a  definite,  divine  im- 
pulse, a  definite,  divine  sending;  a  divine  message 
which  remains  unchanged,  however  free  he  may  be 
to  express  it  in  his  own  words ;  faith  in  men  as  re- 
sponsive to  truth,  and  a  clear  vision  of  their  capac- 
ity for  being  and  becoming;  a  devotion  to  his  task 
which  enlists  his  whole  personaHty;  a  knowledge 
of  the  vital  teachings  of  his  predecessors,  which 
he  revoices ;  a  supreme  appreciation  of  Jesus  Christ 
as  the  ever-living  Leader  Who  claims  the  personal 
devotion  of  every  man. 

John,  the  inspired  witness,  regards  Jesus,  the 
Christ,  as  the  one  religious  Leader  of  the  race,  the 
one  Person  Who  can  appeal  to  persons  from  above, 
Who  can  enable  men  to  become  what  they  ought 
to  be,  because  He  is  the  One  on  Whom  the  Spirit 
descended  as  a  dove,  upon  Whom  the  Spirit  abides, 
and  Who  alone  bestows  the  Spirit  in  baptism.  If 
John  feels  the  forward  impulse  that  inspires  and 
sustains  him,  he  knows  that  his  task  is  temporary 
and  will  only  lead  men  to  appreciate  the  greater  One 
Whom  he  came  to  herald.  His  lesser  leadership  fits 
with  the  greater  leadership  of  Christ,  and  this  is 
its  greatest  value  as  it  is  its  greatest  glory. 


61 


CHAPTER  IV. 
Supremacy  of  Jesus. 

Jesus  entered  the  social  life  of  His  time  with  the 
same  enlightening  and  uplifting  influence  that  char- 
acterized His  entrance  into  the  life  of  individuals 
with  whom  He  found  fellowship.  His  presence 
awakened  expectation  there  and  His  power  satisfied 
it.  The  unexpected  need  became  the  natural  occa- 
sion for  His  kindly  act  of  relief,  while  that  act  be- 
came the  visible  form  in  which  He  manifested  to 
human  eyes  and  conveyed  to  human  minds  the  hid- 
den glory  of  His  deity. 

The  marriage  at  Cana  on  the  third  day  after  the 
events  previously  recorded,  brings  Jesus  face  to  face 
with  the  task  of  replenishing  the  wine  for  the  feast 
or  of  permitting  the  occasion  to  be  dishonored  by 
the  lack  of  a  sufficient  supply.  "And  the  mother  of 
Jesus  was  there,"  as  a  guest  and  perhaps  a  friend 
of  the  family,  or  a  semi-social  leader,  who  was  suf- 
ficiently interested  to  point  out  the  need  to  Jesus, 
with  the  evident  desire  that  He  should  save  the  sit- 
uation. This  gentle  reminder  and  gracious  request 
came  from  the  one  who  knew  Him  best  and  who 
seems  to  have  expected  Him  not  to  procure  by  pur- 
chase, but  to  produce  in  some  supernatural  way,  the 
needed  supply.  She,  therefore,  enjoins  the  servants 
to  obey  Him  and  carry  out  any  directions  He  may 
see  fit  to  give. 

62 


Supremacy  of  Jesus 

Jesus  encourages  no  interference  with  His  plans 
and  His  purposes,  and  refuses  to  be  directed  by  any 
one,  even  the  most  intimate  friend.  He  asserts  His 
own  independence  and  freedom  of  action,  a  very 
suggestive  fact  for  all  who  pray  to  the  Virgin  Mary 
as  though  she  were  able  to  counsel  or  even  command 
the  Christ.  His  Hfe  in  the  home  for  thirty  years, 
and  especially  His  peculiar  personality,  had  raised 
high  the  expectations  of  His  mother,  for  He  had 
performed  no  miracles  as  yet  by  which  she  could 
justify  her  anticipations  or  on  which  she  could  base 
her  request.  "This  beginning  of  signs  did  Jesus 
in  Cana  of  Galilee."  None  was  performed  in 
childhood  or  early  manhood,  and  those  described  in 
the  apocryphal  writings  plainly  show  evidences  of 
pious  fiction.  His  miracles  mark  His  maturity,  and 
hence  reveal  His  good  judgment.  His  purpose  to 
minister  to  men  in  mind  and  spirit  even  when  feed- 
ing or  healing  the  body,  and  also  His  strength  of 
manhood  closely  associated  with  His  divine  power. 
John  appreciated  the  glory  manifested  by  the  mir- 
acle at  Cana,  but  we  may  well  believe  that  to  him 
Jesus  was  always  more  than  His  miracles,  after 
their  performance  as  well  as  before.  They  in  no 
way  add  to  His  power  or  His  person  by  means  of 
exercise  or  development,  but  simply  give  visible 
expression  to  both  in  a  manner  that  appeals  to  the 
minds  of  men  through  the  avenue  of  their  senses. 

The  directions  given  by  Jesus  to  the  servants  an- 
ticipate the  result  produced.  His  first  miracle  is  no 
fortuitous  affair,  no  experiment  narrowly  escaping 
a  possible  failure  or  barely  achieving  a  partial  suc- 

63 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

cess.  His  first  command,  "Fill  the  water-pots  with 
water,"  has  only  been  carried  out  when  His  second, 
"Draw  out  now  and  bear  unto  the  ruler  of  the 
feast,"  completes  His  self-set  task  in  the  little  social 
gathering  at  Cana  that  day. 

Jesus  considers  the  contents  of  those  six  water- 
pots  to  be  wine,  and  asks  the  servants  to  act  accord- 
ingly. But  is  this  the  fact?  May  we  not  turn  an 
affirmation  into  an  interrogation  and  ask  with  a 
fair  show  of  reason,  Has  "the  water  now  become 
wine"?  Has  the  word  of  Jesus  alone  caused  that 
becoming?  Jesus  considers  it  wine,  the  servants 
serve  it  as  wine,  the  ruler  of  the  feast  pronounces  it 
wine  of  a  superior  quality,  though  he  was  an  un- 
biased judge,  for  he  knew  not  its  origin  and  he  was 
a  competent  judge,  for  he  distinguished  its  quality 
in  comparison  with  what  had  been  previously  pre- 
sented. He  is  impressed  so  favorably  that  he  calls 
the  bridegroom,  to  express  his  congratulations  with 
candor  and  delight,  while  the  bridegroom,  no  doubt, 
shares  his  opinion,  as  well  as  the  guests  at  the  mar- 
riage feast. 

The  closing  fact  and  the  crowning  truth  is  the 
effect  upon  the  disciples,  who  appreciate  this  man- 
ifestation of  "His  glory."  They  behold  His  divine 
power,  associate  it  with  His  person,  and  therefore 
believe  on  Him.  Without  doubt  they  had  believed 
on  Him  before,  but  now  their  faith  rests  on  Him 
more  intelligently  and  with  added  assurance.  Per- 
haps their  minds  pursued  their  accustomed  path, 
running  before  the  great  Leader  and  expecting  Him 
presently  to  manifest  His  power  in  the  liberation  of 
64 


Supremacy  of  Jesus 

the  Jewish  people  from  the  Roman  rule  in  order  to 
restore  the  ancient  glory  of  the  chosen  nation.  Some 
may  have  believed  on  Him  as  the  Son  of  God  ac- 
cording to  their  previous  confession,  their  thoughts 
turning  inward  and  Godward  rather  than  outward 
and  earthward.  Surely  each  one  in  that  little  com- 
pany had  sufficient  evidence  to  convince  him  and 
abundant  reason  to  believe  that  Jesus  exercised 
power  over  nature  like  God,  immediate,  causal,  cre- 
ative. 

John  calls  the  miracle  a  sign  which  points  to 
Jesus  as  a  divine  messenger  with  a  divine  message. 
He  reads  the  event  according  to  the  rules  of  reli- 
gious thinking.  The  exercise  of  divine  power  evi- 
dences the  presence  of  a  divine  person  and  confirms 
his  message  as  coming  from  God.  Jesus  was  more 
than  a  man  to  His  disciples,  for  His  act  was  more 
than  human.  He  was  more  than  a  man  to  His 
mother,  who  evidently  expected  Him  to  do  what 
no  mere  man  could  do.  He  could  not  be  less  than 
a  prophet,  God's  representative,  God's  spokesman, 
Who  came  to  declare  the  divine  word  and  the 
divine  will,  and  Who  confirmed  both  by  divine 
agency.  His  message  must,  therefore,  be  from  God, 
as  He  himself  was  also,  and  hence  both  must  be 
accepted  accordingly. 

The  doctrine  of  the  miracle  at  Cana  includes  the 
divine  power  of  Jesus  as  it  appears  in  two  forms, 
that  of  divine  control  and  that  of  divine  relation. 
He  exercises  a  divine  control  over  nature,  and 
thereby  shows  that  He  holds  a  divine  relation  to 
nature.    That  control  is  absolute  and  that  relation  is 

65 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

immediate,  causal,  creative.  He  speaks  and  it  is 
done,  He  commands  and  the  result  honors  His 
word.  His  word  expresses  His  will  not  only  to  in- 
telligent beings,  but  also  to  inert  and  unintelligent 
matter.  The  change  which  takes  place  has  no  as- 
signable cause  except  His  word  and  His  will.  One 
substance  becomes  another,  one  chemical  combina- 
tion becomes  a  different  one,  not  by  evolution,  for 
there  was  nothing  in  the  water  that  could  change  it 
into  wine,  either  instantly  or  in  the  course  of  time ; 
not  merely  by  the  addition  of  a  new  ingredient  ca- 
pable of  effecting  the  change,  but  by  raising  it  to 
the  plane  and  the  consistency  of  a  life-product  with- 
out the  usual  life-process.  Nor  can  His  power  be 
separated  from  His  person  in  John's  thinking,  for 
Jesus  acts  in  this  instance  without  prayer  or  any 
appeal  to  God,  as  though  His  relation  to  God  were 
secondary  or  only  human.  His  power  is  divine,  and 
hence  His  person  is  divine,  and  in  the  acceptance 
of  this  natural  conclusion  they  rejoice  in  this  first 
manifestation  of  His  deity  in  the  field  of  material 
things. 

Every  age  and  every  individual  is  called  upon  to 
place  an  estimate  on  the  Person  of  Christ.  It  evi- 
dently costs  men  an  effort  to  rise  to  the  complete 
acceptance  of  His  deity.  As  Rev.  Augustus  H. 
Strong  has  said,  "We  constantly  tend  to  an  atheistic 
and  unchristian  view  of  nature."  This  intellectual 
and  moral  lapse  must  be  met  and  overcome  by  the 
religious  leader  in  every  age.  This  habit  of  mind 
must  be  radically  changed,  and  hence  this  beginning 
of  miracles  so  appropriate  then  is  quite  as  appro- 

66 


Supremacy  of  Jesus 

priate  now  so  far  as  it  fosters  faith  in  Christ.  Men 
are  not  in  urgent  need  of  such  a  miracle  to-day  as 
an  impressive  spectacle,  but  they  do  need  to  learn 
its  lesson  concerning  Christ's  relation  to  nature  and 
Christ's  control  over  nature,  both  of  which  remain 
unchanged. 

From  the  same  author  we  quote  again,  "This  mir- 
acle shows  us,  on  the  contrary,  that  nature  is  only 
the  expression  of  the  divine  mind  and  will,  and  that 
this  divine  mind  and  will  is  the  mind  and  will  of 
Jesus  Christ."  Hence,  His  easy  control  of  nature 
and  His  immediate  relation  to  it.  Hence,  also,  His 
manifestation  of  His  glory  with  nature  as  canvas 
and  pigment.  It  lends  itself  to  Him  and  serves 
men  who  believe  in  Him  and  who 

"Behind  creation's  throbbing  screen 
Catch  movements  of  the  great  Unseen." 

"Christ's  miracles  were  signs  of  something  higher 
than  themselves."  They  point  to  fundamental  being, 
the  personal  will  as  a  final  fact,  to  Himself  as  the 
Son  of  man  and  the  Son  of  God.  It  is  not  a  tenta- 
tive, but  a  true  and  final  explanation  we  require, 
and  in  which  alone  our  minds  can  rest.  In  this 
connection,  our  author  asserts  that  "the  universe  is 
moral  and  religious  at  its  core,"  and  also  that  "in 
the  miracle  of  Cana,  Christ  shows  Himself  to  be  the 
Life  of  nature,  the  Ennobler  of  nature,  the  Inter- 
preter of  nature,  as  only  He  can  be  Who  was  in  the 
beginning  with  God  and  was  Himself  God."  Noth- 
ing less  than  John's  conception  of  Jesus  as  the  self- 
revealing  God  affords  a  sufficient  philosophical  ba- 
sis for  the  miracle  at  Cana,  the  first  in  a  long  list 

67 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

which  has  been  recorded,  and  a  yet  longer  list  which 
passes  with  the  merest  mention. 

Should  we  not  expect  Jesus  to  show  His  relation 
to  nature  as  well  as  to  man  if,  indeed,  His  teaching 
is  fundamental?  Do  we  not  expect  Him  to  answer 
the  question  of  becoming  in  the  realm  of  matter  as 
well  as  in  that  of  mind?  Nature  must  surely  fur- 
nish one  field  of  His  activity.  Here  He  must  spell 
out  His  divine  wisdom  and  purpose  so  that  men  are 
given  the  best  possible  opportunity  to  think  of  Him 
as  He  is  and  then  believe  on  Him  because  they  know 
Him.  His  will  works  directly  and  silently  as  in  the 
ordinary  course  of  nature  and  without  any  apparent 
hindrance.  It  is  causal,  while  having  no  apparent 
connection  with  material  things  save  His  spoken 
word.  This  wonderful  will  fits  into  this  ordinary 
occasion  in  the  social  life  of  men  with  simple  pro- 
priety, and  might  have  left  no  record  of  its  presence 
had  not  the  unexpected  need  of  the  hour  called  that 
will  into  exercise,  with  a  result  that  is  unquestion- 
ably divine  and  that  at  once  proclaimed  Jesus  to  be 
human  in  sympathy  and  service,  and  divine  in  power 
and  person. 

The  cleansing  of  the  temple  follows  closely  the 
account  of  the  miracle  at  Cana,  containing,  as  it 
does,  a  similar  doctrine.  In  the  latter  we  have  the 
manifestation  of  the  divine  power  of  Jesus  in  the 
realm  of  nature,  and  in  the  former  a  like  manifesta- 
tion in  the  field  of  religious  life.  His  authority  is 
asserted  in  the  temple  at  Jerusalem,  the  ecclesiastical 
center  in  the  Jewish  system,  an  authority  that  was 
not  derived  from  the  Roman  government  nor  from 

68 


Supremacy  of  Jesus 

the  Jewish  Sanhedrin,  but  which  was,  nevertheless, 
respected  as  real  and  righteous.  His  was  not  the 
authority  of  superior  force,  but  of  an  honest  heart 
and  a  reasonable  mind,  determined  to  uphold  the  re- 
ligious standards  of  His  people,  an  authority  that 
was  not  blinded  by  personal  gain,  but  one  that  was 
derived  directly  from  God  and  stood  for  the  honor 
of  His  house.  He  exercises  His  authority,  not  as 
civil  or  ecclesiastical,  but  as  divine  in  its  origin  and 
spirit,  its  influence  and  outcome. 

Jesus  "found"  men  in  the  courts  of  the  temple 
who  did  not  belong  there  and  who  were  not  permit- 
ted to  remain  there.  He  was  actively  interested  in 
the  house  of  God.  He  came  not  to  condone  wrong 
or  to  wink  at  abuses.  He  came  to  establish  right- 
eousness upon  the  earth,  and  hence  He  drove  out 
the  sheep  and  oxen  offered  for  sale  as  sacrifices, 
overthrew  the  tables  of  the  money  changers,  poured 
out  their  money  as  a  thing  without  real  value,  and 
commanded  the  dove-sellers  to  take  their  wares  out 
of  the  sacred  precincts.  The  birds  are  not  liberated. 
He  destroys  no  property,  as  He  appropriates  none. 
A  single  purpose  inspires  Him,  the  cleansing  of  the 
house  of  God  from  this  mercenary  desecration.  His 
command  interprets  His  act,  'Take  these  things 
hence ;  make  not  My  Father's  house  a  house  of  mer- 
chandise." Religion  must  be  rescued  from  false 
interpretations.  Mercenary  men  are  willing  to  be 
religious  and  serve  the  temple  of  God  if  it  can  be 
made  a  convenient  market  place  and  if  their  self- 
complacency  can  supersede  the  divine  command. 
The  priests  permitted,  or  perhaps  approved,  the  per- 

69 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

nicious  practice,  and  thus  error  sprang  from  the 
very  foundation  of  truth.  But  Jesus  showed  a  spe- 
cial interest  in  the  temple,  because  He  stood  in  a 
special  relation  to  it,  since  He  could  speak  of  it  as 
"My  Father's  house."  His  disciples  note  His  zeal, 
while  the  Jews  question  His  authority  and  ask  for 
a  sign  in  justification  of  His  act.  Jesus  meets  their 
demand.  His  authority  should  have  its  attestation. 
It  will  have  for  them  and  for  all  the  world.  The 
sign  to  which  He  points  and  the  one  He  gave  to 
them  in  the  course  of  His  earthly  ministry,  the  one 
which  became  a  result  of  their  opposition  and  their 
act  of  intended  destruction,  was  the  only  sign  the 
Jews  really  accepted  as  authentic,  His  death  at  their 
hands,  and  His  resurrection  in  spite  of  all  their  pre- 
cautions. His  supremacy  is  not  overcome  by  His 
death,  but  on  the  other  hand,  we  are  compelled  to 
see  a  new  evidence  of  it.  "Destroy  this  temple  and 
in  three  days  I  will  raise  it  up."  Here,  at  last,  they 
were  given  positive  proof  of  His  authority  and  evi- 
dence that  should  have  been  conclusive  to  those  who 
habitually  rejected  Him.  The  form  of  His  state- 
ment conceals  His  meaning  from  the  Jews,  while 
their  own  mental  attitude  hinders  any  rational  in- 
terpretation. They  are  materialists,  and  think  only 
of  the  visible  temple  and  the  years  required  for  its 
construction.  After  His  resurrection.  His  disciples 
remembered  His  words,  appreciated  His  meaning, 
and  knew  that  He  saw  the  end  from  the  beginning. 
In  this  first  exercise  of  His  authority  in  the 
temple,  the  first  difference  of  thinking  and  sep- 
aration   of   mind   between   Jesus    and   His   Jewish 

70 


Supremacy  of  Jesus 

opposers  appears.  They  gradually  assumed  the  at- 
titude of  enemies  and  finally  produce,  or  at  least 
occasion,  the  very  result  he  predicts.  ''This  gospel 
is  the  record  of  two  opposing  tendencies,"  says  Rev. 
x\ugustus  H.  Strong.  "God's  self-manifestation  in 
Christ  stirs  up  hatred  that  brings  the  Savior  to  the 
cross,  but  it  also  awakens  love  that  ensures  the  tri- 
umph of  His  kingdom."  As  a  divine  Person,  Jesus 
must  of  necessity  find  friends  and  face  foes.  As 
positive  in  His  religious  life  and  teaching,  He  must 
make  both.  Old  conceptions  will  come  in  conflict 
with  the  new ;  the  old  social  order  must  be  modified ; 
the  old  religious  system  must  be  dissolved,  or  for- 
ever remain  fixed  in  an  impassive  stare.  The  divine 
Presence  among  men  means  new  life,  new  bonds 
of  fellowship,  the  constitution  of  society  on  the  ba- 
sis of  new  principles.  The  authority  of  Jesus  will 
be  known  and  His  power  felt,  for  both  touch  the 
foundations  of  human  life,  individual,  social,  gov- 
ernmental, and  cannot  be  successfully  resisted  or 
set  aside. 

The  doctrine  we  derive  from  the  cleansing  of  the 
temple  has  three  elements :  the  divine  authority  of 
Jesus,  His  divine  right,  and  His  divine  power. 
None  of  these  is  derived  from  the  church  or  the 
State,  and  the  presumption  is  that  they  come  from 
God.  Such  is  His  own  assumption,  if  not  His  asser- 
tion, in  this  connection,  and  He  simply  leaves  His  act 
stand  as  its  own  vindication  at  the  bar  of  reason  and 
conscience.  The  sign  which  He  oflfered  as  proof  of 
His  right  to  interfere  with  temple  abuses.  He  gave 
in  due  time,  not  simply  as  a  great  historic  event  nor 

71 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

merely  as  a  doctrinal  deliverance,  but  as  a  psycho- 
logical development  that  discloses  before  all  men 
His  personality  in  its  twofold  nature,  human  and 
divine.  His  authority  is  neither  temporary  nor  lim- 
ited, but  suited  to  His  nature  and  His  personality. 
It  must  be  understood  in  the  light  of  all  that  fol- 
lows and  all  that  precedes.  In  the  language  of  Prof. 
Henry  C.  Sheldon :  "The  Word  was  with  God,  that 
is,  in  living  union  with  Him.  He  was  God,  that  is, 
the  adequate  image  and  counterpart  of  the  eternal 
Father.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Word  is  the  me- 
dium of  manifestation.  He  bridges  over  the  inter- 
val between  the  invisible  Father  and  the  visible 
system  of  things."  "He  brings  us  authentic  tidings 
of  these  invisible  things."  With  this  view  clearly 
before  us,  the  authority  of  Jesu?  becomes  a  matter 
of  fact  and  moment,  a  matter  of  course  and  conse- 
quence. The  doctrine  contained  in  John's  account 
of  the  cleansing  of  the  temple  has  ample  foundation 
in  the  Person  of  Christ,  and  challenges  us  as  a  mat- 
ter of  faith  and  reason  to  adopt  it  as  our  own\ 

The  second  chapter  of  John's  Gospel  closes  with 
the  statement  that  many  believed  on  His  name  at  the 
Passover  in  Jerusalem,  but  that  Jesus  did  not  trust 
Himself  to  them.  They  were  convinced  by  the 
signs  He  wrought  in  their  presence,  but  their  faith 
was  incomplete  or  immature.  It  needed  other  ele- 
ments or  further  development  or  additional  confir- 
mation. They  saw  the  signs,  but  did  they  really  see 
the  One  who  gave  them?  Did  they  know  who  He 
was?  Did  they  feel  morally  pledged  to  Him?  Je- 
sus did  not  trust  Himself  to  them,  not  because  of 

n 


Supremacy  of  JesuS 

His  own  timidity,  but  because  of  their  lack  of  con- 
viction and  personal  devotion  to  Him. 

He  knew  them,  and  because  of  His  knowledge, 
He  withheld  His  confidence.  He  is  not  adrift  among 
men,  now  the  victim  of  their  professed  faith  and 
again  of  their  enforced  fear.  He  is  easily  supreme 
in  the  realm  of  mind  as  well  as  in  that  of  worship, 
and  even  that  of  nature,  with  her  various  elements 
and  processes.  The  supremacy  of  Jesus  in  the  mind 
of  man  is  elsewhere  illustrated,  as  though  the  sub- 
ject required  the  most  thorough  treatment,  being 
the  principal  field  of  His  present  activity. 

"He  knew  all  men,"  and  hence  did  not  confide  in 
these  particular  ones  who  had  a  measure  of  faith  in 
Him.  He  knew  all  men  collectively  and  individu- 
ally, and  so  He  knew  each  man  in  himself  and  in 
his  social  and  political  relations.  The  mind  of  each 
one  was  open  to  His  view,  as  material  things  are 
apparent  to  the  natural  eye.  Like  God,  He  looks 
into  the  soul  and  sees  what  it  has  been,  what  it  is, 
and  even  what  it  will  be.  He  knows  how  any  man 
stands  related  to  Him.  He  measures  the  personal 
knowledge  and  strength  of  devotion  in  each  indi- 
vidual case,  suffering  no  defeat  by  misplaced  con- 
fidence, nor  ever  wronging  any  man  by  discrediting 
or  discounting  the  faith  he  really  has. 

No  error  enters  here  at  the  most  critical  point  in 
the  consideration  of  the  supremacy  of  Jesus.  The 
negative  statement,  "He  needed  not  that  any  one 
should  bear  witness  concerning  man,"  assures  us 
that  Jesus  possessed  this  power  in  His  own  right, 
by  His  own  faculty  of  perception  or  intuition,  and 

73 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

by  His  authoritative  entrance  into  the  invisible 
reahn  of  the  human  mind  and  even  the  charmed  cir- 
cle of  human  personality.  His  kingdom  could  not 
be  ruled  by  report.  Second-hand  knowledge  could 
not  take  the  place  of  immediate,  divine  knowing. 
The  kingdom  of  God  is  a  spiritual  kingdom,  the 
congregation  of  just  men  made  perfect,  that  assem- 
bly of  beings  in  which  spirit  knows  spirit  even  as 
God  knows  the  spirit  in  man  and  as  the  human 
spirit  knows  God. 

The  final  statement  with  reference  to  Jesus'  su- 
premacy in  the  realm  of  mind  asserts  His  perfect 
knowledge  of  the  contents  of  the  human  mind.  "He 
Himself  knew  what  was  in  man."  No  unexplored 
remainders  in  conscience  or  intellect  or  will  con- 
fused Him  at  one  point  or  confronted  Him  at  an- 
other. The  contents  of  the  mind  were  as  the  alpha- 
bet before  Him,  which  lost  none  of  its  simplicity 
when  combined  in  words  and  sentences,  in  chapters 
and  books.  Intellect,  wonderful  in  its  power  of 
reasoning  and  research  and  constructive  conception, 
sensibility,  revealing  deHcacy  of  feeling  and  power 
of  emotion,  will,  with  a  capacity  for  degradation 
equal  to  its  capacity  for  exaltation  to  the  sublime 
heights  of  moral  rectitude  and  religious  faith;  all 
alike  were  the  subjects  of  His  knowledge.  Even 
the  free  will  of  man  held  no  mysteries  for  Him  and 
never  misled  Him  by  a  hair's  breadth.  With  the 
contents  of  the  soul  before  Him,  with  the  key  to 
its  inner  life  and  motives,  with  a  better  knowledge 
of  its  aims  and  ideals  and  aspirations  than  that  of 
the  soul  itself,  its  unsolved  problems  became  the  un- 

74 


Supremacy  of  Jesus 

studied  conclusions  of  Jesus.  He  knows  man  essen- 
tially and  fundamentally  and  cannot  know  him  bet- 
ter by  his  own  act  or  confession. 

John  shows  us  in  the  passage  under  consideration, 
the  supremacy  of  Jesus  in  the  realm  of  nature,  of 
religion,  and  of  mind.  If  Jesus  stands  related  to 
nature  so  that  it  is  responsive  to  His  word,  if  He 
rightly  asserts  His  relation  to  the  religious  worship 
of  the  temple,  can  we  think  of  Him  as  excluded 
from  the  mind  of  man,  or  must  we  rather  believe 
that  he  is  related  to  the  mind  of  every  man,  funda- 
mentally and  essentially,  and  that  this  relation  is 
immediate  and  that  it  should  govern  the  personal 
and  social  life  of  all  men?  This  threefold  relation 
constitutes  the  logical  unity  of  the  second  chapter 
of  the  Gospel  of  John,  giving  us  three  distinct  views 
of  a  single  subject. 

As  we  follow  the  course  of  John's  thought,  we  are 
impressed  with  the  depth  of  his  doctrine.  As  we  fol- 
low Jesus  (the  name  uniformly  used  in  this  second 
chapter),  and  behold  His  signs  as  here  recorded 
and  here  referred  to,  and  especially  as  we  see  Him 
revealed  in  act  and  word,  we  may  learn  to  believe 
on  Him  so  sincerely  that  with  His  perfect  knowl- 
edge He  may  yet  confide  in  us. 


75 


CHAPTER  V. 

Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being. 

The  revelation  of  God  involves  the  revelation  of 
man  as  a  practical  and  doctrinal  necessity.  The 
light  that  enables  men  to  see  God  gives  them  a 
clearer  vision  of  themselves.  Every  step  they  take 
in  the  process  of  knowing  God  is  a  step  in  self- 
knowledge  also.  The  knowledge  of  self  must  keep 
pace  with  the  knowledge  of  God  if  the  progress  of 
the  latter  is  not  to  be  arrested. 

By  showing  Himself  supreme  in  the  midst  of  na- 
ture, in  the  established  order  of  religious  worship, 
and  over  the  minds  of  men  who  gathered  about 
Him,  He  gives  men  a  certain  clue  to  His  character. 
He  reveals  Himself.  Then  the  next  step  in  the 
progress  of  their  knowledge  is  to  teach  men  to  know 
themselves  as  spiritual  beings.  They  must  be 
brought  to  His  viewpoint  of  life  and  His  basis  of 
teaching.  Their  mental  action  will  then  aid  and 
not  obstruct  the  course  of  His  thought.  H  He  has 
laid  the  foundation  for  constructive  thinking  in  ref- 
erence to  Himself  by  showing  His  universal  su- 
premacy. He  now  lays  the  foundation  for  man's  con- 
ception of  himself  as  spiritual,  first,  by  showing 
what  this  signifies,  and,  second,  by  showing  what  it 
involves. 

The  third  chapter  follows  closely  the  logical  con- 
clusion of  the  second.    There  Jesus  enters  the  realm 

76 


Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being 

of  the  mind  and  considers  human  conduct ;  here  He 
presses  into  the  reahii  of  the  spirit  and  considers 
man's  relation  to  God.  There  He  shows  His  su- 
premacy in  nature,  worship,  and  mind,  while  here 
He  appears  as  the  one  Teacher  Who  can  instruct 
men  concerning  the  new  birth  as  a  religious  ex- 
perience and  a  spiritual  necessity  in  order  to  enter 
the  new  life  which  He  describes  as  invisible,  spirit- 
ual, and  eternal. 

A  man  of  the  Pharisees  named  Nicodemus,  a  ruler 
of  the  Jews,  has  become  sufficiently  interested  in 
the  teaching  of  Jesus,  and  in  Jesus  as  a  teacher,  to 
come  to  Him,  under  cover  of  darkness,  for  personal 
conference  and  instruction.  We  need  not  suppose 
that  he  came  to  offer  advice,  as  his  subsequent  ac- 
tion gives  him  the  other  attitude.  The  conversation 
resulting  rises  above  the  level  of  mere  discussion. 
It  is  no  mere  comparison  or  conflict  of  ideas.  This 
distinguished  student  is  led  by  this  distinguished 
Teacher  into  a  course  of  thinking  before  unknown 
to  him,  though  he  was  "the  teacher  of  Israel"  and 
might  have  known  more  than  he  did. 

The  Gospel  of  John  has  been  called  the  Gospel  of 
the  conversations,  in  view  of  the  fact  that  more  than 
any  other,  it  records  particular  interviews  of  our 
Lord  with  individuals.  As  the  Gospel  of  the  Person 
of  Christ,  it  naturally  appeals  to  personality  every- 
where and  calls  it  out  in  earnest  thought  and  inter- 
ested conversation.  These  conversations  as  here 
recorded,  harmonize  with  John's  philosophy  and 
lead  us  to  note  another  fact  equally  worthy  of  em- 
phasis.   They  reflect  the  method  of  Christian  work 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

in  its  very  beginnings.  Jesus  comes  unattended,  but 
He  does  not  long  continue  alone.  His  presence  is 
His  appeal.  His  conversation  opens  the  channel  of 
communication  and  awakens  an  interest  that  is  earn- 
est and  active. 

Nicodemus  comes  to  Jesus  with  an  opinion  al- 
ready formed.  He  recognizes  Him  as  a  teacher 
and  describes  Him  as  a  teacher  who  has  come  from 
God.  He  is  not  a  product  of  the  schools.  As  a 
man  who  is  accustomed  to  think  and  able  to  reach 
conclusions,  he  states  the  ground  of  his  opinion, 
"For  no  man  can  do  the  signs  that  Thou  doest  ex- 
cept God  be  with  him."  This  personal  knowledge 
forms  the  path  of  approach  and  opens  the  way  for 
personal  intercourse.  He  virtually  introduces  him- 
self to  this  Person,  Whose  wisdom  and  friendship 
he  desires  to  share.  Honest  and  not  evasive,  earn- 
est and  not  argumentative,  he  meets  a  mind  and 
heart  that  more  than  answer  to  his  own. 

Jesus  accepts  at  its  full  value  the  knowledge  Nic- 
odemus has  of  Him,  and  immediately  declares  that 
there  is  something  more  required  to  place  him  be- 
side his  new  Teacher.  The  kingdom  of  God,  the 
association  of  noble  souls,  the  real  fellowship  of  the 
good,  has  its  own  beginning,  its  own  basis  of  being 
and  life.  ''Except  one  be  born  anew,  or  from  above, 
he  cannot  see  the  kingdom  of  God."  Birth  is  the 
entrance  way  into  the  kingdom  of  God.  The  new 
birth  is  the  primary  condition  of  the  new  life.  Birth 
from  above  is  a  psychological  necessity  in  order  to 
bring  a  man  into  personal  relations  with  Christ. 
Nicodemus  must  be  attuned  to  his  Teacher,  as  in 
78 


Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being 

wireless  telegraphy  instrument  is  adjusted  to  in- 
strument, in  order  to  secure  communication  of 
thought  and  to  enter  into  personal  association.  The 
stamp  of  the  divine  must  mark  the  human,  and  not 
the  reverse.  The  centers  of  the  human  self-con- 
scious, self-governing  life  must  be  brought  into 
harmony  with  the  divine  in  order  to  establish  a 
relation  such  as  Jesus  contemplates  in  His  king- 
dom. 

Difference  of  meaning  in  the  use  of  words  sep- 
arates the  two  minds.  Nicodemus  thinks  of  a  phys- 
ical form  of  birth,  while  Jesus  thinks  of  a  spiritual 
form.  The  thought  of  Nicodemus  is  materialistic, 
impossible,  irrelevant.  He  fixes  his  attention  upon 
the  idea  of  birth  and  apparently  ignores  or  misap- 
prehends the  source  and  nature  of  the  spiritual  birth 
as  Jesus  defines  it.  Jesus  explains  by  stating  that 
there  is  a  birth  of  water,  in  public  confession  of  sin 
and  profession  of  faith,  and  also  of  the  Spirit  as 
the  agent  of  regeneration,  and  of  the  new  life  thus 
constituted.  Physical  birth  and  spiritual  birth  are 
separate  and  distinct  processes  that  lead  to  separate 
and  distinct  results.  Each  has  its  own  level  of  life 
and  the  lower  cannot  rise  to  the  higher  of  itself  nor 
does  the  higher  ever  sink  down  to  the  lower.  "Ye 
must  be  born  anew,"  is  enunciated  as  a  universal 
principle  of  religious  Hfe.  It  is  a  principle  that 
applies  to  all  men,  however  refined  or  moral  or  de- 
voted to  the  law.  They  must  be  born  from  above  in 
order  to  enter  the  kingdom  of  God  and  attain  the 
new  life,  which  is  the  only  real  life.  Spiritual  birth 
marks  one  distinct  step  in  the  ascending  scale  of 

79 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

being,  and  harmonizes  with  all  we  find  below, 
whether  in  man  or  in  nature.  Spirit-birth  is  a  nec- 
essary condition  of  Spirit-life,  and  Spirit-life  is  the 
only  life  that  is  free  and  unlimited  in  its  movements 
and  its  agency.  "The  wind  bloweth  where  it  will, 
and  thou  hearest  the  voice  thereof,  but  knowest  not 
whence  it  cometh,  and  whither  it  goeth ;  so  is  every 
one  that  is  born  of  the  Spirit." 

Jesus  considers  the  doctrine  of  the  new  birth  as 
coming  within  the  comprehension  of  a  teacher  of 
Israel  and  the  field  of  his  instruction,  but  the  pres- 
ent conversation  develops  the  fact  that  Nicodemus 
had  not  mastered  it  as  an  idea  or  an  experience, 
though  it  belongs  to  the  present  life.  It  is  among 
the  earthly  things  men  can  and  ought  to  know  and 
yet  find  it  hard  to  believe  and  receive  even  from  the 
lips  of  our  Lord.  If  this  first  lesson  has  not  been 
learned  and  this  fundamental  doctrine  mastered, 
how  can  the  advanced  teachings,  the  really  "heav- 
enly things,"  be  communicated? 

Personal  religion  is  not  only  theoretical  knowl- 
edge, but  also  practical  knowledge,  knowledge  that 
has  passed  into  the  very  constitution  of  man.  "We 
speak  that  which  we  know  and  bear  witness  of  that 
which  we  have  seen."  Sense  and  reason  have  tested 
this  knowledge,  thus  bringing  it  into  the  same  class 
with  all  other  knowledge.  Not  less  sure,  not  less 
accurate,  but  only  more  reliable  and  more  real  be- 
cause it  lies  in  the  field  of  the  mental  and  spiritual, 
the  very  center  of  man's  being  and  knowing. 

The  "heavenly  things"  are  above  and  beyond 
man,  and  hence  the  Son  of  man  descends  to  the  level 

80 


Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being 

of  ordinary  human  life  in  order  to  make  known 
these  things.  The  invisible,  the  spiritual,  the  eter- 
nal, these  are  for  man  here  and  now,  not  as  a  dream 
or  a  vision,  but  as  the  very  substance  of  his  life,  the 
reality  that  remains  when  the  visible,  the  natural, 
the  temporal  have  faded  like  a  mist  from  his  view. 
The  prisoner  of  hope  must  see  the  prospect  before 
him,  near  and  distant,  in  order  to  have  a  normal 
development  of  his  being  and  in  order  to  influence 
his  becoming.  His  spiritual  development  cannot  be 
irrational  and  unscientific  if  it  links  itself  with  the 
Son  of  man  Who  descends  out  of  heaven  that  He 
may  lead  men  up  into  the  realm  of  heavenly  being 
and  heavenly  life. 

And  now  Jesus  seems  to  take  the  text  Nicodemus 
gave  Him  at  the  beginning  of  their  conversation, 
**Thou  art  a  teacher  come  from  God,"  and  proceeds 
to  describe  Himself  as  the  Son  of  man.  Who  de- 
scended out  of  heaven,  Who  is  not  a  product  of 
earth,  Who  is,  while  on  earth,  essentially  in  heaven, 
and  Who  must  be  lifted  up  like  the  serpent  in  the 
wilderness  that  whosoever  beHeveth  may  in  Him 
have  eternal  life.  Jesus'  conception  of  Himself  as 
the  real  head  and  representative  of  the  race  is  a 
distinct  advance  on  the  thought  of  Nicodemus,  who 
must  have  listened  with  profound  interest  to  those 
wonderful  words  which  Jesus  had  spoken  to  him 
and  which,  according  to  scholars  of  after  ages,  in- 
spired John  to  pen  that  all-inclusive  sentence  re- 
specting the  love  of  God  and  the  gift  of  His  only 
begotten  Son.  If  this  great  sentence,  with  what 
follows,  was  spoken  to  Nicodemus,  as  some  com- 

81 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

mentators  hold,  did  Nicodemus  identify  the  Son  of 
man  and  the  Son  of  God  in  the  Person  of  Jesus,  and 
thus  obtain  a  glimpse,  if  not  a  steady  view,  of  the 
one  central  figure  in  the  Gospel  of  John?  Jesus 
asserted  His  deity  wherever  there  was  a  m.ind  and 
heart  prepared  to  receive  it.  He  declared  His  sac- 
rifice for  sin  at  the  first  opportunity.  He  enters  his- 
tory by  entering  the  human  mind  as  well  as  by  en- 
tering the  human  body.  God's  love  measured  by  the 
sending  of  His  son,  the  humanity  of  Jesus,  His 
deity  and  His  sacrifice  for  sin,  all  these  are  imme- 
diately and  vitally  related  to  the  nev/  birth  and 
man  as  a  spiritual  being.  They  are  so  considered 
by  John  and  perhaps  by  Jesus,  and  hence  are  re- 
corded in  this  connection.  They  indicate  the  method 
and  type  of  the  spiritual  life  and  offer  a  cause  equal 
to  the  effect.  Believe  and  so  be  born  from  above, 
so  enter  the  Spirit-life,  so  be  associated  with  the 
Son  of  man  in  His  kingdom.  This  is  the  life  eter- 
nal, as  distinguished  from  the  life  temporal.  Eternal 
life  is  a  present  fact  and  not  only  a  future  reality. 
It  arises  from  the  manifestation  of  the  Divine  will 
in  the  life  of  the  individual.  It  lifts  the  man  above 
the  limitations  of  his  present  life  as  a  citizen  of  this 
world,  so  that  he  knows  himself  in  other  relations. 
In  the  higher  activities  of  his  being  he  transcends 
the  limitations  of  time  and  space  and  enjoys  the 
light  and  liberty  of  eternity.  According  to  a  recent 
writer,  "Whenever  a  man  really  prays,  he  passes  out 
of  time  into  eternity." 

Thus  the  radiant  thought  of  Jesus  rises  on  these 
ascending  lines  of  spiritual  light.     Nicodemus  must 
82 


Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being 

have  wondered  and  rejoiced  alternately  as  he  meas- 
ured the  depth  of  Jesus'  knowledge  of  man's  nature 
and  man's  need,  and  the  height  of  His  knowledge 
of  God's  greatness  and  God's  goodness.  But  why 
should  not  the  great  Teacher  touch  the  very  founda- 
tions of  knowledge  on  the  side  of  man  and  then  also 
on  the  side  of  God?  If,  indeed,  He  came  not  to 
conceal  Himself,  but  to  reveal  Himself,  and  if  in 
reality  He  is  the  human  and  divine  Person  John 
has  already  declared  Him  to  be,  then  we  must  ex- 
pect to  find  in  His  teaching  the  final  answer  to  the 
deepest  cravings  of  the  human  mind  and  heart. 

Jesus  is  not  disappointing  to  Nicodemus,  inas- 
much as  man  in  his  perfection  cannot  be  disappoint- 
ing to  imperfect  man  and  God  revealed  can  never 
be  less  than  deity.  Jesus  promises  eternal  life  to 
any  one  who  believes  on  the  uplifted  Son  of  man. 
So  also  His  promise  of  eternal  life  is  given  to  him 
who  believes  on  the  only  begotten  Son.  Does  Nic- 
odemus see  the  two  united  in  one  Person?  Does  he 
realize  that  God  in  His  divine  love  bestows  His 
divine  Gift  and  that  the  Son  of  God  and  the  Son 
of  man  are  the  distributing  centers  of  the  divine 
life? 

Human  personality  in  its  perfection,  as  we  see  it 
in  Jesus,  and  as  we  will  perhaps  find  it  nowhere 
else,  is  associated  with,  and  perhaps  conditioned  by, 
the  divine  personality.  If  there  is  association  in  the 
divine  life,  may  not  this  be  a  necessary  condition  of 
normal  human  life?  Perhaps  our  own  personal  ex- 
perience will  suggest  that  human  personalitv  at  its 
best  is  not  altogether  self-constituted,  but  that  ever}' 

83 


"the  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

sincere  soul  must  say  with  the  Psalmist,  ''All  my 
springs  are  in  Thee."  The  divine  forever  constitut- 
ing the  human,  and  the  human  forever  imaging  the 
divine,  such  is  the  order  of  existence  as  it  unfolds 
before  us,  such  is  the  arch  of  being  that  impresses 
us  with  its  fitness,  its  strength,  its  beauty.  With 
Nicodemus,  we  wonder  and  rejoice  when  our 
Teacher  tells  us  that  God's  love  for  the  world 
brings  God's  Son  into  the  world  as  God's  gift  to 
men,  collectively  and  individually,  so  that  the  be- 
liever shall  not  perish,  but  have  eternal  life.  Love 
gives,  always  gives,  and  supreme  love,  divine  love, 
gives  itself — the  best  it  can  give.  The  Son  is  God's 
"unspeakable  gift,"  through  Whom  men  escape  a 
lower  life  not  of  the  eternal  kind  and  quality,  and 
freely  enter  those  superior  and  supernal  relations 
that  bind  the  soul  to  the  Son  and  so  to  God,  and 
hence  also  to  all  beings  who  have  a  place  in  His 
kingdom.  This  supreme,  this  fundamental,  rela- 
tion is  the  one  that  conditions,  or  rather  constitutes, 
the  man  as  really  religious,  that  fits  him  into  his 
proper  place  in  the  order  of  being  as  divinely  con- 
stituted, that  produces  a  worthy  self-hood  in  the 
midst  of  a  society  and  kingdom  that  is  invisible, 
spiritual,  eternal.  "Eye  hath  not  seen  or  ear  heard, 
neither  hath  it  entered  into  the  heart  of  man  the 
things  that  God  hath  prepared  for  them  that  love 
Him,  but  God  hath  revealed  them  unto  us  by  His 
Spirit." 

God  sends  His  Son,  not  to  judge  the  world,  as  we 
might  easily  expect  when  guilt  is  thereby  confronted 
by  moral  purity,  but  primarily  to  save  the  world. 

84 


Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being 

His  coming  inevitably  reveals  sin,  but  it  calls  men 
to  a  higher  life  that  is  free  from  sin.  Salvation  is 
primary  and  judgment  is  secondary,  yet  men  may 
reverse  this  order  by  their  own  attitude  of  mind. 
The  believer  may  be  free  from  the  operation  of 
judgment,  v^hile  the  unbeliever  precipitates  it  upon 
himself  by  his  rejection  of  the  Son.  His  act  goes 
back  to  God,  and  the  One  he  regarded  far  off  is 
found  to  be  near,  but  only  as  *'a  swift  witness" 
against  him.  With  an  opportunity  to  choose  either 
light  or  darkness,  men  who  choose  the  latter  show 
their  love  for  it.  This  becomes  their  judgment  that 
what  they  loved  is  confirmed  by  their  own  choice 
and  then  also  by  divine  permission.  This  choice, 
thus  confirmed,  has  no  provision  for  change.  It 
continues  in  being,  rejecting  light,  rejecting  the 
Son,  rejecting  God.  The  evil  doer  hates  the  light, 
while  the  one  who  does  well,  loves  the  light  and 
seeks  it  evermore.  The  difference  lies  in  the  per- 
sons and  not  in  the  light.  '*He  that  doeth  the 
truth"  comes  to  the  light,  because  he  co-operates 
with  God,  and  his  works  have  a  permanent  value 
in  His  kingdom. 

If  love  is  the  primal  relation  of  God  to  man,  I 
faith  is  the  primal  relation  of  man  to  God.  Man 
cannot  love  God  till  he  knows  Him,  and  he  can- 
not know  Him  without  believing  Him.  When  God 
sends  His  Son,  He  challenges  man's  faith  by  His 
presence.  Faith  regards  God  as  near  and  not  far 
off,  as  trustworthy  and  not  to  be  doubted  and  dis- 
obeyed. Archbishop  Whately  says,  "Disbelieving  is 
believing,  since  to  disbelieve  any  assertion  is  to  be- 

85 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

lieve  its  contradictory."  Professor  Flint  elucidates 
this  idea  as  follows :  "In  religion,  as  in  every  other 
department  of  thought  and  life,  man  is  bound  to 
regulate  his  belief  by  the  simple  but  comprehensive 
principle  that  evidence  is  the  measure  of  assent. 
Disbelief  ought  to  be  regulated  by  the  same  prin- 
ciple, for  disbelief  is  belief,  but  belief  of  the  oppo- 
site. Unbelief  is  the  opposite  both  of  belief  and  dis- 
belief. Ignorance  is  to  unbelief  what  knowledge  is 
to  belief  or  disbelief.  The  whole  duty  of  man,  as  to 
belief,  is  to  believe  and  disbelieve  according  to  evi- 
dence, and  neither  to  believe  nor  disbelieve  when 
the  evidence  fails  him."  Jesus  offers  the  evidence 
that  reaches  the  mind  of  Nicodemus  and  of  any 
earnest  inquirer,  and  hence  He  has  a  right  to  expect 
a  corresponding  faith.  The  mind  and  heart  of 
Deity  make  their  appeal  to  the  mind  and  heart  of 
humanity.  In  His  divine  and  human  Personality, 
Jesus  is  God's  appeal  to  man,  while  the  only  appro- 
priate response  is  that  of  faith,  the  personal  con- 
fidence and  commitment  that  issues  in  a  regenerate 
heart  and  a  religious  life. 

The  new  birth  means  a  new  being  and  a  new 
order  of  life.  Something  radical  takes  place,  for 
something  radical  is  required.  The  human  agent 
co-operates  with  the  divine  agent,  the  Holy  Spirit, 
in  the  realization  of  the  Spirit-birth  and  the  attain- 
ment of  the  Spirit-life.  The  effect  is  worthy  of  the 
cause  and  the  cause  is  amply  able  to  produce  the 
effect.  The  new  birth  is,  to  all  intents  and  purposes, 
the  beginning  of  a  new  being,  the  beginning  of  the 
spiritual  life  of  the  reborn,  a  life  that  may  b^  called 

86 


Man  as  a  Spiritual  Being 

divine  by  a  limited  use  of  the  term  and  in  recog- 
nition of  its  principal  element.  Thus  the  Gospel  of 
John,  "with  its  profound  spiritual  philosophy,  deep- 
ens and  purifies  the  currents  of  life,"  to  use  the 
language  of  the  Rev.  Henry  M.  King,  and  so  makes 
room  for  the  invisible,  the  spiritual,  and  the  eternal, 
and  invites  man  to  become,  by  faith  in  Christ,  a 
spiritual  being  in  the  sense  in  which  Christ  teaches 
us  to  think  of  him. 


87 


CHAPTER  VI. 
John's  Testimony  Repeated  and  Completed. 

Repetition  is  a  common  method  of  emphasis  in 
the  Scriptures,  and  the  repetition  of  John's  testi- 
mony serves  this  purpose  in  a  way  we  are  able  to 
appreciate.  This  initial  witness  never  receded  from 
his  first  position,  but  rather  advanced  as  he  gained 
more  knowledge  of  Him  Whom  he  heralded.  By 
comparing  his  last  recorded  statement  with  his 
earlier  ones,  we  are  assured  that  he  fully  under- 
stood the  meaning  of  his  own  mission  and  his  own 
message,  and  that  in  his  last  recorded  testimony  he 
placed  special  emphasis  on  the  deity  of  Qirist.  His 
mind  found  no  real  resting  place  till  it  reached  this 
solid  foundation,  where  every  witness  of  Christ 
finally  finds  rest.  His  position  is  more  clearly 
stated,  and  we  easily  note  the  progress  in  his 
thought  and  the  completion  of  his  conception  of 
Christ  as  a  divine  being. 

In  his  earlier  and  in  his  later  testimony,  John 
states  two  points  which  relate  to  himself.  In  both 
we  find  the  confession,  "I  am  not  the  Christ,"  the 
truth  of  which  was  already  being  written  in  history. 
The  second  point  of  reference  to  himself  has  two 
aspects,  one  looking  back  and  the  other  looking 
forward.  In  his  first  testimony  he  had  said,  "He 
was  before  me,"  pointing  apparently  to  the  pre- 
existence  of  our  Lord.     In  the  second  testimony  he 


John's  Testimony   Repeated  and  Completed 

says,  "He  must  increase,  but  I  must  decrease,''  point- 
ing to  the  future  greatness  and  glory  of  the  Christ. 
No  one  can  confuse  the  two  and  take  the  one  for 
the  other.  Jesus  and  John  stand  in  contrast  and 
not  in  comparison.  The  superiority  of  Jesus  is  be- 
yond question  or  dispute,  a  superiority  which  in 
no  way  robs  John  of  his  own  honor,  but  rather  af- 
fords him  the  opportunity  to  direct  men  with  greater 
certainty  to  this  greater  One. 

With  reference  to  Jesus,  he  says  in  his  second 
testimony :  First,  He  comes  from  above  and  testifies 
of  what  He  has  seen  and  heard;  second.  He  was 
sent  by  God,  speaks  the  words  of  God,  and  imparts 
the  Spirit ;  third,  He  is  the  Son  and  enjoys  the  love 
of  the  Father,  Who  has  given  all  things  into  His 
hands.  In  his  first  testimony  this  last  article  does 
not  appear,  while  here  it  is  presented  with  its  full 
value  and  becomes  the  real  resting  place  of  his 
mind.  In  all  three,  the  emphasis  is  placed  on  the 
higher  nature  of  Christ  as  the  supreme  fact  that 
calls  for  corresponding  consideration. 

Two  statements  follow,  one  referring  to  the  be- 
liever and  one  to  the  disbeliever  or  the  disobedient. 
He  that  believeth  on  the  Son  hath  eternal  life;  but 
he  that  obeyeth  not  the  Son,  shall  not  see  life.  His 
theory  is  not  speculative  knowledge  but  practical 
truth,  if  there  be  such  a  distinction,  and  reflects  the 
facts  as  they  are  found  in  life.  He  is  thinking 
through  to  the  confines  of  knowledge  on  all  sides, 
and  he  is  thinking  according  to  the  principles  of 
Christian  teaching. 

89 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Thus  John's  first  testimony  is  completed  and 
emphasized  by  his  second,  which  discredits  nothing 
in  the  first,  but  lends  it  force  by  its  conception  of 
Christ  as  the  Son  and  God  as  His  Father. 

The  proximity  of  John  and  Jesus  in  their  work  of 
baptism  and  the  question  of  a  Jew  about  purifying, 
call  out  this  second  testimony,  but  the  doctrinal 
value  gives  it  its  place  and  its  importance  in  the 
Gospel.  From  the  study  of  man  as  a  spiritual  being, 
we  turn  to  the  study  of  Christ  as  the  Son,  the  real 
source  of  spiritual  life.  Jesus  says  the  new  birth  is 
from  above,  while  John  says  the  Christ  is  from 
above.  Both  speak  of  heavenly  things  and  earthly 
things  in  contrast.  Both  speak  of  the  Spirit,  and 
with  the  same  general  conception  of  Him.  Both 
tell  of  the  Father's  love  and  of  the  Son  in  His  rela- 
tion to  the  Father  and  to  humanity.  Both  tell  of 
eternal  life  as  the  gift  of  the  Son  and  the  possession 
of  the  believer,  and  also  of  the  sad  failure  of  the 
unbeliever  who  has  forfeited  the  favor  of  God. 
John's  final  testimony  seems  to  reflect  the  teaching 
of  Jesus,  though  the  Master  surpasses  His  faithful 
witness  without  in  the  least  discrediting  him. 

John's  testimony,  as  repeated  and  completed, 
shows  no  change  in  essence,  though  changed  in  em- 
phasis and  modified  in  form.  John  justifies  Jesus  in 
view  of  His  activity  in  baptizing  and  His  aggressive 
leadership.  He  is  not  jealous  of  Jesus,  even  in  his 
own  field  of  religious  activity.  The  success  of  Jesus 
in  winning  the  public  ear  was  to  be  expected.  He 
is  the  bridegroom,  the  one  central  figure,  the  Person 
above  all  other  persons.    He  it  is  Who  increases  as 

90 


John's  Testimony   Repeated  and  Completed 

a  religious  leader,  while  His  forerunner  decreases 
when  his  work  and  office  have  been  fulfilled.  John 
rises  to  his  height  and  passes  his  zenith,  while  Jesus 
knows  no  zenith  beyond  which  there  conies  inevi- 
table decline.  His  task  is  never  completed,  but 
actively  proceeds  from  age  to  age.  His  Personality 
is  a  sun  that  never  sets.  It  is  ever-present  and  ever- 
radiant. 

Like  a  witness  on  the  stand,  John  gives  an  account 
of  himself  before  he  undertakes  to  declare  his 
knowledge  of  the  Christ.  I  am  not  the  Christ,  but 
am  sent  before  Him.  I  am  the  friend  of  the  bride- 
groom and  rejoice  greatly  because  of  the  bride- 
groom's voice.  I  must  decrease,  but  He  must  in- 
crease. John  knows  himself  in  relation  to  Jesus  and 
in  relation  to  God.  The  man  who  knows  God  knows 
himself,  and  failure  to  know  himself  should  be  suf- 
ficient evidence  to  convince  us  of  his  failure  to  know 
God.  A  man's  knowledge  of  God  must  be  read  on 
the  dial  of  his  own  consciousness.  It  must  enter 
into  his  own  personal  experience.  It  cannot  con- 
tinue to  be  theoretical  and  speculative,  and  he  who 
cannot  read  that  dial,  who  defaces  it  by  evil  acts, 
by  wrong  motives  and  mental  states,  carelessly  or 
consciously  hinders  his  knowledge  of  God.  John 
knows  himself  in  his  final  testimony  just  as  he  knew 
himself  in  his  first,  the  historic  forerunner  of  Jesus, 
the  proper  antecedent  of  Jesus  in  the  thought  and 
life  of  the  people  of  Palestine,  the  Roman  empire, 
and  the  whole  world. 

John's  conception  of  Christ  has  had  a  develop- 
ment that  adds  to  its  value.     He  thinks  of  Him  as 

91 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

increasing,  while  he  himself,  in  the  nature  of  the 
case,  must  decrease.  Great  as  the  Messiah  is  from 
the  very  first.  He  still  grows  in  the  estimation  of 
His  faithful  servant.  There  are  no  bounds  to  His 
being  on  one  side.  His  humanity  seems  to  be  the 
center  and  His  deity  the  circumference.  John 
looks  along  the  lines  of  His  life  and  sees  no  limits 
anywhere.  He  must  increase  in  human  history  from 
age  to  age,  increase  in  influence  on  the  course  of 
human  thought  and  life,  increase  in  the  estimation 
of  every  believer,  if  not  also  in  the  deliberate  opin- 
ion of  every  thoughtful  mind. 

Humanity  fails,  but  Deity  forever  rises  and  re- 
mains, and  only  as  Deity  inspires  humanity,  c-an 
humanity  come  to  its  perfection  of  being  and  life 
in  Jesus  or  in  any  man.  The  Christ  comes  from 
above  and  is  above  all.  His  being  and  life  are 
heavenly,  and  therefore  unlike  the  earthly  life  which 
surrounded  Him.  Life  has  its  descending  as  well 
as  its  ascending  scale,  and  earthly  life  inspires  men 
to  think  earthly  thoughts.  These  thoughts  they 
speak.  But  here  is  One  Who  comes  from  heaven 
and  tells  of  things  eternal,  though  many  men  fail 
to  receive  this  divine  testimony  concerning  these 
divine  things.  They  who  receive  His  witness  set 
their  seal  to  this,  ''that  God  is  true."  He  has  ful- 
filled His  promise.  Their  conclusion,  individually 
attained,  is  final  for  them,  embodying  their  thought 
and  theory  of  life,  their  conduct  among  men,  their 
hope  and  preparation  for  the  future.  Such  a  con- 
clusion is  not  continually  called  up  for  review  be- 
cause it  has  back  of  it  both  reason  and  revelation. 

92 


John's  Testimony  Repeated  and  Completed 

He  whom  God  sends,  speaks  God's  words,  and  such 
are  the  words  of  the  Christ  to  Whom  God  giveth 
not  the  Spirit  by  measure,  since  Christ  is  all  He 
should  be,  and  hence  sets  no  limits  to  the  divine. 
No  man  has  measured  His  obedience  to  God  or  His 
faithfulness  to  man.  As  there  is  no  limit  of  obedi- 
ence on  the  one  hand,  there  is  no  limit  of  bestow- 
ment  on  the  other.  He  is,  therefore,  the  full  foun- 
tain of  spiritual  Hfe  for  men,  forever  transforming 
and  enriching  them  by  His  divine  presence  and 
power. 

John  completes  his  conception  of  the  Christ  by 
thinking  of  Him  as  the  Son  Whom  the  Father  loves 
and  Whom  He  honors  by  giving  all  things  into  His 
hand.  He  leaves  no  open  space  and  loose  ends  in 
his  system  of  being  and  life.  All  centers  in  God,  the 
Father,  Whose  love  is  ministered  to  men  throug^h 
the  Son,  His  appointed  administrator  of  the  uni- 
verse. John  has  a  theology  as  well  as  a  religion, 
a  philosophy  as  well  as  an  experience.  He  preached 
and  baptized  because  he  was  sent  by  God,  because 
his  message  never  grew  less  on  his  lips,  and  because 
the  knowledge  of  God  pressed  in  upon  his  mind  and 
heart  from  its  infinite  source. 

When  he  says.  He  that  believeth  on  the  Son  hath 
eternal  life,  but  he  that  obeyeth  not  the  Son  shall 
not  see  life,  but  the  wrath  of  God  abideth  on 
him,  John  is  looking  upon  men  with  the  eye  of  a 
religious  leader.  He  sees  the  path  of  life  stretching 
before  the  feet  of  all  men  and  inviting  them  to 
enter  it.  He  sees  the  path  of  disobedience,  and  how 
it  leads  men  away  from  God,  separate  from  the  Son 

93 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  beyond  the  vision  of  life,  inasmuch  as  disobedi- 
ence disquaHfies  men  even  to  see  life.  Farther  yet 
they  stray  from  the  Source  of  life  and  more  and 
more  conscious  they  become  that  the  wrath  of  God 
abideth  on  them.  Here  his  testimony  ends.  Here 
his  thought  abides  as  though  in  perpetual  appeal 
to  each  soul,  warning  it  against  the  evil  and  direct- 
ing it  to  Christ,  Who  alone  can  lead  men  back  to 
God,  the  source  and  giver  of  life  eternal. 

No  new  theology  afflicts  this  first  religious 
leader  in  this  first  Christian  age,  when,  in  those 
early,  formative  days,  there  might  have  been  occa- 
sion for  new  thought  of  every  description.  True  to 
the  Christ,  John  was  true  to  himself.  His  concep- 
tion of  the  Christ  finds  its  completion  in  the  Son, 
and  his  thought  of  man's  sin  and  man's  salvation  are 
developed  and  deepened  accordingly.  His  doctrine 
was  preachable,  practical,  personal.  He  stood  next 
to  Christ  as  His  faithful  friend  and  forerunner,  nor 
ever  left  his  appointed  place.  His  view  of  him- 
self and  his  view  of  the  Christ  suffered  no  radical 
change  from  the  beginning  to  the  end  of  his  min- 
istry. The  author  of  the  fourth  Gospel  does  not 
speak  of  him  as  ''the  Baptist,"  for  his  baptism  had 
long  before  given  place  to  that  which  Christ  insti- 
tuted, and  he  thinks  of  him  now  as  the  one  whose 
privilege  it  was  to  appreciate  the  coming  Christ  and 
bear  witness  of  Him  in  terms  adapted  to  the  people 
of  his  own  age  and  to  all  men  of  earnest  and  in- 
quiring mind. 


94 


CHAPTER  VII. 

The  Nature  of  True  Worship  and  the  Knowl- 
edge OF  God  as  a  Spirit. 

Two  reasons  are  assigned  for  the  presence  of 
Jesus  in  Samaria  when  He  conversed  with  the  wo- 
man at  the  well.  He  left  Judea  because  the  Phari- 
sees had  heard  of  His  success  in  winning  disciples 
by  baptism  as  well  as  by  teaching  and  healing.  The 
Pharisees  objected  to  His  healing  and  teaching,  but 
far  more  objectionable  must  have  been  the  gathering 
of  followers  who  were  bound  to  Him  by  the  rite  of 
baptism.  In  going  to  Galilee,  where  He  would  be 
free  from  Pharisaic  espionage.  He  must  needs  pass 
through  Samaria  as  the  shortest  and  best  way,  and 
we  may  well  believe  also  for  the  purpose  of  declar- 
ing the  truth  to  a  Samaritan  woman  who  was  ready 
to  receive  it,  and  to  many  others  who,  through  her 
testimony,  were  led  to  accept  Him  as  the  Savior. 

Jesus  had  an  aptitude  for  discovering  inquirers 
and  liberating  them  from  the  bondage  of  traditional 
conceptions  and  long-established  customs,  for  mak- 
ing room  in  their  minds  for  God  and  then  for  satis- 
fying the  need  He  had  awakened  by  making  God 
known  to  them.  He  talks  to  them  of  God  as  though 
He  knew  God  and  as  though  what  He  said  was 
self-evidencing,  like  His  own  personality.  The  life 
of  Jesus  cannot  be  written  in  event  alone,  as  though 
this  exhausted  it.  It  issues  in  duty  and  doctrine, 
and  continually  rises  into  the  moral  and  spiritual  or 

95 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

brings  the  moral  and  spiritual  into  ordinary  life 
and  common  events. 

"In  the  fourth  Gospel  nothing  happens,  but  every- 
thing is,"  according  to  the  discriminating  statement 
of  Rev.  Henry  S.  Nash.  Truth  has  no  transitions 
and  God  does  not  grow.  When  the  Word  became 
flesh.  Deity  was  not  augmented  or  enlarged,  but  the 
divine  purpose  was  realized  in  Jesus  Christ  as  the 
Savior  of  men  and  the  Revealer  of  God.  Hence,  we 
are  inclined  to  think  that  the  moral  destitution  of 
the  woman  at  the  well,  coupled  with  her  willingness 
to  receive  His  teaching  and  Himself  as  the  Alessiah, 
caused  Him  to  pass  through  Samaria.  His  physical 
need  after  His  journey,  coupled  with  His  willingness 
to  receive  a  drink  from  her,  contrary  to  Jewish  cus- 
tom, causes  Him  to  ask  it  of  this  sinful  Samaritan 
woman  who  came  to  draw  water  at  Jacob's  well. 
However  real  His  need,  it  is  not  the  only  cause  or 
even  the  chief  cause,  as  appears  in  the  progress  of 
their  conversation.  His  need  is  real,  according  to 
its  kind,  and  occasions  the  discovery  of  her  need, 
which  is  one  of  another  kind.  And  so  each  has  the 
opportunity  and  the  ability  to  aid  the  other,  the  one 
supplying  water  from  the  well  and  the  Other,  the 
living  water,  which  is  the  gift  of  God. 

Jesus  seeks  to  secure  action  on  the  part  of  this 
one  whom  He  seeks  to  aid.  He  suggests  the  action 
He  seeks  to  secure.  Such  is  His  philosophy  of  be- 
ing and  becoming  as  we  are  able  to  derive  it  from 
Him,  and  as  He  was  able  to  embody  it  in  the  affairs 
of  ever>'-day  life.  Before  Him  is  one  whose  human 
sympathies  are  constrained  by  race  prejudice,  whose 
96 


The  Nature  of  True  Worship 

intellect  acts  under  the  influence  of  religious  tradi- 
tion, but  whose  will  has  shown  a  certain  force  and 
freedom.  To  that  will  He  appeals  as  the  most  likely 
path  of  approach  and  the  most  likely  faculty  to  re- 
spond to  His  teaching. 

Her  complete  surprise  at  His  request  for  a  drink 
of  water  from  the  well  calls  forth  His  proposal  to 
give  to  her  living  water  at  her  request.  She  would 
make  request  in  spite  of  prejudice  and  custom.  He 
assures  her,  if  she  knew  two  things,  the  gift  of  God 
and  Who  it  is  that  says  to  her,  Give  ^le  to  drink. 
Thus,  revelation  begins  at  the  bottom  and  all  over 
again  with  each  individual  of  the  race.  The  soul 
must  come  into  the  divine  Presence  and  not  rest 
satisfied  with  the  divine  gift.  The  saving  grace 
of  God  does  not  take  the  place  of  God  Himself. 
Here  is  the  essence  of  religion.  It  is  that  mani- 
festation of  God  to  the  individual  soul  which  an- 
swers its  deepest  need.  The  knowledge  this  woman 
had  of  God  and  worship  and  religion  had  not  saved 
her  from  her  sin  nor  had  it  satisfied  her  mind  as  to 
the  relative  sacredness  of  Gerazim  and  Jerusalem 
as  centers  of  worship.  The  task  of  Jesus  is  two- 
fold, calling  out  the  knowledge  she  had,  and  then 
presenting  new  truth,  personal  in  interest,  applicable 
at  that  moment,  and  calculated  to  reform  and  recon- 
struct all  her  thinking. 

This  wayward  woman  doubts  the  ability  of  Jesus 
to  supply  the  living  water,  because  she  thinks  in 
terms  of  her  own  ordinary  life,  and  fails  to  grasp 
the  spiritual  significance  of  His  words  or  to  see 
behind  them  the  spiritual  Being  who  calmly  utters 

97 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

them.  Hers  is  the  common  failure  which  precedes 
the  opening  of  the  mind  to  spiritual  truth  and  spir- 
itual beings.  She  does  not  reject  the  teaching  of 
Jesus.,  but  simply  fails  to  understand  it.  Placing 
**this  water"  and  "the  water  I  shall  give  him,"  in 
contrast,  she  seems  to  note  a  difference,  but  when 
she  asks  for  the  living  water,  she  asks  for  it  just  as 
she  would  ask  for  the  water  in  the  well.  She  is  still 
a  materialist  in  her  religious  thinking.  Evidently 
her  request  in  tliis  form  cannot  be  granted,  nor  can 
it  be  made  to  mean  to  her  what  it  meant  to  Jesus. 
As  a  master  in  psychology,  Jesus  makes  no  fruitless 
effort  to  explain,  but  changes  the  conversation  to  a 
subject  more  intimately  related  to  her  moral  and 
mental  life. 

By  a  request  relating  to  her  sinful  life,  Jesus  calls 
forth  her  conscience  in  the  conscientious  reply,  I 
have  no  husband.  He  accepts  her  answer  as  true 
to  fact  and  true  to  her  own  best  knowledge  of  her 
past.  When  Jesus  relates  facts  of  her  marital  rela- 
tions, which  she  accepts  as  true,  He  has  evidently 
entered  the  realm  of  her  real  life,  and  she  in  turn 
enters  the  realm  of  His  life.  She  thinks  with  Him 
at  some  points  at  least.  She  begins  to  know  Him 
well  enough  to  assert  that  He  is  a  prophet.  Her 
first  thought  of  Him  was  that  He  was  not  greater 
than  Jacob,  who  gave  them  this  well,  and  whom  she 
claims  as  father.  Now  her  conception  has  changed, 
and  she  propounds  a  vexed  question  in  religion,  at 
least  for  her  people,  where  men  ought  to  worship 
God.  The  question  is  not  altogether  theoretical,  but 
has  for  her  a  personal  and  practical  interest,  since 

98 


The  Nature  of  True  Worship 

her  religious  views,  like  her  religious  life,  are  not 
altogether  satisfactory  to  her. 

Jesus  does  not  answer  her  as  a  Jew  would  an- 
swer, nor  yet  as  a  Gentile,  but  as  a  man  whose  ideas 
and  ideals  are  universal,  so  that  when  He  addresses 
that  one  woman  at  the  well,  He  is,  in  fact,  speaking 
to  all  the  world.  He  speaks  as  we  might  expect 
Him  to  speak  Whom  John  introduced  at  the  very 
beginning  of  his  Gospel.  He  speaks  as  One  who 
fully  appreciates  man's  need  of  fundamental  truth. 
How  could  He  deceive  the  human  mind,  betray 
human  reason,  or  mock  the  human  heart?  How 
could  He  dismiss  an  honest  inquirer  unsatisfied? 
How  could  He  awaken  a  soul  to  its  deepest  needs 
without  a  personality  capable  of  satisfying  them? 

His  answer  comes  in  terms  of  mind  and  heart  and 
spirit,  and  not  in  terms  of  time  and  place.  Place, 
however  sacred,  can  never  be  the  chief  thing  in  wor- 
ship. Men  look  here  and  there,  and  thus  lose  the 
way  into  the  soul-life  with  all  it  signifies  concerning 
the  sense  of  God  and  the  service  of  God.  The  view- 
point of  Jesus  is  not  that  of  the  Jew  versus  that  of 
the  Samaritan,  for  He  stands  in  the  open  and  de- 
clares what  all  men  should  know,  that  the  worship 
of  God  is  the  worship  of  the  Father.  This  is  a  def- 
inite statement  which  comes  closer  to  us.  The  ob- 
ject of  worship  among  the  Jews  revealed  Himself, 
but  no  revelation  of  God  was  ever  made  to  the  Sa- 
maritan people.  Salvation  comes  from  the  Jews  in 
the  course  of  their  history.  He  Who  is  the  truth 
never  fails  to  recognize  the  truth,  whatever  its 
form,  promise  or  prophecy,  history  or  personality. 

99 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

He  loves  the  wholeness  of  truth,  fresh  and  vital,  and 
unmingled  with  error,  and  offers  it  to  one  and  all 
when  He  declares  that  true  worship  now  and  hence- 
forth is  spiritual  because  the  nature  of  God  requires 
it.  God  is  a  Spirit,  and  worship  must  harmonize 
with  Him  as  its  fundamental  fact.  His  worshipers 
must  worship  Him  in  accordance  with  His  nature, 
and  hence  they  must  worship  in  spirit  and  in  truth. 
Mere  external  or  formal  worship  lacks  the  elements 
of  truth  and  reality  because  it  fails  to  appreciate 
the  object  or  express  the  subject  since  both  are  spir- 
itual, and  only  on  this  basis  can  they  meet  in  this 
act  of  mutual  recognition.  The  hour  has  come  when 
God  has  been  revealed  as  a  Spirit,  and  hence  He 
must  be  worshiped  as  such. 

Neither  Jesus  nor  John  finds  any  occasion  for  de- 
fining the  word  spirit,  but  both  use  it  as  a  term 
directly  understood  in  individual  life  and  personal 
experience.  The  invisible,  immaterial  self,  the  self- 
conscious,  self-determining  being  that  knows  itself 
as  I  and  other  beings  thus  constituted  as  Thou — 
this  being  knows  itself  as  a  spirit,  individual  and 
unitary,  and  has  therefore  the  basis  for  the  knowl- 
edge of  God  as  a  Spirit.  As  a  spirit,  God  is  a  Per- 
sonal Being  Who  has  given  to  each  creature  who 
bears  His  image,  a  genuine  copy  of  Himself  in  the 
self-conscious  and  self-determining  powers  which 
characterize  the  human  person,  and  thus  fits  man  to 
know  God  and  worship  Him  acceptably.  God  is  not 
conditioned  by  a  body,  needs  no  local  dwelling  place, 
and  no  material  ofiferings.  His  claim  is  met  when 
man  prostrates  his  spirit  before  the  Divine  Spirit. 

100 


The  Nature  of  True  Worship 

God  is  not  unknowable  to  man,  since  man  holds  the 
key  to  the  knowledge  of  God  as  a  Spirit.  Hence, 
both  Jesus  and  John  use  the  conception  as  one  whose 
content  already  exists  in  the  ordinary  mind. 

The  breadth  of  mind  and  sympathy  which  we 
may  call  the  universality  of  Jesus,  has  had  its  effect 
upon  this  Samaritan  woman.  It  has  lifted  her  out 
of  her  narrow,  local  prejudice  and  personal  limita- 
tions. She  has  followed  as  best  she  could  the  teach- 
ing of  Jesus  and  has  no  further  question  to  ask. 
Her  doubt  has  been  met,  and  now  she  expresses  her 
faith  in  the  coming  of  the  Messiah  and  His  ability 
to  teach  all  needed  truth.  This  wayward  woman  has 
a  personal  creed  and  longs  to  lean  on  some  one 
who  can  satisfactorily  answer  her  deepest  spiritual 
needs.  Jesus  claims  at  once  to  be  the  Messiah, 
Whom  this  woman  at  once  accepts  with  all  the 
ardor  of  her  nature.  She  is  quickly  dominated  by 
the  new  knowledge  and  enlisted  in  the  new  life. 
Doubt  has  departed  and  faith  has  its  full  power  in 
an  undivided  heart.  She  becomes  a  witness  to  her 
people,  by  whose  voice  of  testimony  they  were  won 
to  Jesus  as  the  vSavior  of  the  world. 

"The  one  thought  that  fills  her  mind,"  says  Rev. 
James  G.  Vose,  ''and  gives  a  glow  and  fascination 
to  her  report  that  cannot  be  resisted  is  what  He 
told  her  of  herself,  .  .  .  'All  that  ever  I  did' ; 
not  some  things  merely.  .  .  .  Jesus  reveals  to  us 
the  hidden  life.  He  enters  our  consciousness  and 
becomes  another  self  within  us."  His  profound  psy- 
chology touches  the  depths  of  the  soul  and  sweeps 
easily  to  the  very  heights  of  its  aspiration.     It  is 

101 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  psychology  of  sin  on  the  one  hand  and  the  psy- 
chology of  salvation  on  the  other,  reminding  us  of 
the  omnipresence  and  omniscience  of  God,  as  set 
forth  in  the  139th  Psalm: 
'*0  Jehovah,  Thou  hast  searched  me  and  known  me. 

Thou  knowest  my  downsitting  and  mine  uprising ; 

Thou  understandest  my  thought  afar  ofif." 
As  a  witness  for  Jesus  in  the  little  city  of  Sychar, 
this  woman  describes  Him  as  a  man ;  a  man  whom 
they  are  invited  to  come  to  see,  a  man  who  re- 
vealed to  her  all  her  past.  Personal  knowledge  and 
personal  experience  always  have  the  accent  of  con- 
viction and  the  emphasis  of  assurance.  Her  own 
mind  holds  its  answer  to  her  own  question.  Is  this 
the  Christ?  while  her  people  offer  theirs  by  com- 
ing, believing,  and  asserting  on  their  own  account 
that  He  is  the  Savior  of  the  world.  Such  He  must 
be  in  order  to  lift  men  in  two  short  days  out  of  their 
narrow  prejudices  into  such  breadth  of  thought  and 
conception  that  called  for  a  life  and  conduct  corres- 
ponding thereto.  The  outcome  of  this  conversation 
at  the  well  leaves  nothing  to  be  desired.  It  satisfies 
His  hearers  and  even  Himself.  He  came  to  them  as 
the  Messiah,  and  they  received  Him  as  such,  for 
no  partial  acceptance  can  satisfy  the  mind  and  heart 
or  work  a  perfect  salvation. 

We  have  seen  Jesus  from  a  new  angle  and  in  a 
new  light.  When  He  reveals  Himself,  He  also  re- 
veals God.  According  to  His  conception,  God  is  a 
Spirit,  and  hence  the  idea  of  worship  is  the  idea  of 
communion  with  God,  and  the  method  is  summed 
up  in  its  genuineness  and  its  spirituality.  Man  is  a 
102 


The  Nature  of  True  Worship 

spirit  also,  and  he  can  never  know  this  fact  in  its 
full  significance  and  its  perennial  promise  except  as 
it  opens  his  whole  being  to  the  influence  of  the  di- 
vine. Jesus  leads  men  G'odward,,  and  hence  His 
leadership  is  real  and  in  the  right  direction.  He 
would  have  men  enter  into  the  teaching  of  this  con- 
versation and  appreciate  the  divine  presence  and 
omnipresence.  As  a  Spirit,  God  is  present  to  the 
man  who  worships  Him  in  spirit  and  in  truth.  Not 
place  and  time,  but  the  presence  of  God  should  im- 
press the  mind  of  the  worshiper.  Thus  Jesus  for- 
ever teaches  us  and  forever  manifests  Himself  as 
the  Messiah  to  the  heart  that  is  ready  to  accept  Him 
and  rejoice  in  His  universality  as  the  Savior  of  the 
world.  The  most  unlikely  person  can  be  enlightened 
and  spiritualized  and  Christianized.  The  religious 
teacher  awakens  conscience  and  leads  inquirers  into 
the  moral  realm,  for  unreality  in  religion  can  never 
satisfy  the  mind,  however  it  may  be  supported  by 
custom  or  tradition.  The  soul  awakened  cries  out 
for  God,  the  living  God,  and  every  earnest  inquirer 
and  every  true  worshiper  finds  his  heart  interpreted 
in  the  poet's  prayer, 

"Beyond  the  sacred  page 

I  seek  Thee,  Lord ; 
My  spirit  pants  for  Thee, 

O  Living  Word." 
Men  need  to  know  the  nature  of  true  worship 
and  God  as  a  Spirit,  since  worship  is  an  activity  of 
every  normal  mind  and  the  knowledge  of  God  is  es- 
sential in  this  personal  approach  to  Him.  Unintel- 
ligent worship  cannot  be  satisfactory  to  an  intelli- 

103 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

gent  worshiper  or  an  intelligent  God.  Jesus,  there- 
fore, enlightens  men  on  a  subject  so  closely  related 
to  their  religious  life  as  we  might  have  expected, 
but  contrary  to  our  expectation  He  addressed  His 
great  words  to  a  wayward  woman.  ''It  is  strange," 
says  Principal  Fairbairn,  ''that  Christ  should  often 
speak  His  most  remarkable  words  to  the  least  re- 
markable persons.  Here  is  a  woman,  who,  for  one 
splendid  moment,  emerges  from  the  unknown, 
stands  as  in  a  blaze  of  living  light,  and  then  vanishes 
into  the  unknown  again.  But  while  she  stands,  she 
is  immortalized ;  the  moment  becomes  one  Eternal 
Now,  in  which  Christ  and  she  face  each  other  for- 
ever, He  giving  and  she  receiving  truths  the  world 
can  never  allow  to  die." 

The  knowledge  of  God  as  a  Spirit,  with  all  this 
implies,  is  essential  to  all  men,  however  low  they 
may  stand  in  the  scale  of  intelligence,  education,  and 
culture,  or  however  high  they  may  rise.  Without 
this  knowledge  they  cannot  understand  the  nature  of 
true  worship  either  as  an  inner  impulse  or  as  a  di- 
rect demand  of  Deity.  They  cannot  know  them- 
selves in  the  principal  relation  of  their  lives.  They 
cannot  worship  with  freedom.  No  wonder  Jesus 
takes  up  this  great  theme  and  unfolds  it  once  for 
all.  No  wonder  John  records  His  words  of  in- 
struction and  inspiration.  No  wonder  all  men  feel 
that  they  have  a  personal  interest  in  this  knowledge. 
Jesus  uncovers  the  soul's  deepest  need  and  then 
provides  for  its  complete  satisfaction.  In  the  light 
of  the  great  truth  He  has  just  announced  He  de- 
clares Himself  as  the  promised  Messiah,  the  spirit- 
104 


The  Nature  of  True  Worship 

ual  Liberator,  and  the  spiritual  Leader.  If  we  know 
God  we  will  also  know  His  Christ,  and  if  we  know 
Christ,  we  will  know  God  in  that  same  measure. 
The  Messiah  comes  to  make  God  known  to  men. 
He  never  hides  God  as  though  He  were  spiritually 
opaque.  Like  a  lens,  He  brings  God  closer  to  the 
seeing  eye.  By  His  teaching,  His  conduct.  His 
character,  His  personality,  He  impresses  men  with 
the  knowledge  of  God  as  a  Spirit;  He  shows  them 
that  they  can  worship  Him  according  to  His  essen- 
tial nature ;  He  appeals  to  them  to  be  true  and  spirit- 
ual at  the  center  and  in  that  particular  form  of 
activity  we  call  worship  in  order  that  they  may  be 
true  and  spiritual  in  all  other  forms  of  human 
activity.  The  true  worshiper  must  bear  some  real 
resemblance  to  the  object  of  his  adoration  and  his 
life  must,  in  some  real  sense,  harmonize  and  even 
blend  with  the  life  of  God. 


105 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
The  Omnipresence  of  Jesus. 

As  a  special  lesson  to  His  disciples  and  in  answer 
to  their  request,  ''Rabbi,  eat,"  Jesus  teaches  them, 
at  the  well  where  He  had  just  taught  the  Samaritan 
woman  that  God  is  a  Spirit,  that  His  bodily  wants 
are  secondary  and  His  spiritual  life  and  service  are 
primary.  "My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  Him  that 
sent  Me,  and  to  accomplish  His  work."  He  never 
counteracts  the  force  of  His  teaching  or  weakens 
its  meaning  by  His  conduct.  He  points  to  the  ever- 
present  harvest  of  souls.  He  asserts  that  the  reaper 
receives  wages  and  gathers  fruit  unto  eternal  life. 
He  sees  that  the  sower  and  the  reaper  come  close 
enough  to  each  other  to  rejoice  together,  while  each 
fulfills  his  particular  task  and  each  has  his  part  in 
the  great  work  of  redemption.  As  His  disciples, 
they  are  sent  to  enter  into  the  labor  of  others  and 
complete  these  spiritual  ministries,  and  therefore 
they  must  begin  to  read  their  duty  in  terms  of 
spiritual  life  and  service. 

The  closing  paragraph  of  the  fourth  chapter  of 
our  Gospel  assumes  the  doctrine  of  the  divine  pres- 
ence and  omnipresence  of  Jesus,  just  as  the  opening 
paragraph  asserts  the  divine  presence  and  omnipres- 
ence of  God.  Both  spring  from  the  same  root,  for 
Jesus  is  a  Spirit  as  God  is  a  Spirit,  and  this  fact 

106 


The  Omnipresence  of  Jesus 

must  necessarily  appear  in  the  life  of  our  Lord.  It 
cannot  be  concealed,  but  must  show  in  act  and 
teaching  and  even  be  intentionally  manifested  by 
One  Whose  purpose  is  self-revelation. 

When  a  nobleman  comes  to  Him  in  Cana  and  asks 
Him  to  come  to  Capernaum  and  heal  his  Son,  Jesus 
knows  what  is  needed  in  the  home  in  Capernaum 
and  provides  for  it  as  effectively  as  though  He  were 
there.  The  exercise  of  His  divine  power  to  heal  is 
not  limited  by  His  bodily  presence.  If  He  appar- 
ently acts  in  absentia,  He  really  acts  only  where  He 
is.  His  Person,  like  His  power,  is  in  no  sense  un- 
real. Hence  we  are  led  to  conclude  that  His  power 
over  disease  in  this  case  points  primarily  to  His 
omnipresence,  and  secondarily,  to  His  deity. 

The  nobleman  found  Jesus  in  Cana,  where  he 
made  request  in  behalf  of  his  sick  son,  who  lay  in 
Capernaum,  twenty  miles  away.  For  an  ordinary 
physician,  one  mile  would  be  as  great  a  barrier  as 
twenty,  if  it  prevents  his  seeing  his  patient  or  even 
sending  a  remedy  to  him.  Distance  efTectually  bars 
a  physician's  agency  under  such  circumstances.  Not 
so  with  Jesus,  the  great  Physician,  Who  treats  both 
body  and  spirit,  and  with  equal  skill.  Without  med- 
icine as  a  remedy,  without  sending  a  staflf  to  lay 
upon  the  diseased  body,  without  any  visible  means 
of  healing,  He  heals  and  brings  at  once  the  desired 
restoration  to  health.  Not  even  the  reassuring 
presence  and  words  of  the  returning  father  pro- 
duce the  effect,  for  the  healing  occurs  when  the 
word   is   spoken    in   Cana,   before   the    father   had 

107 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

turned  his  face  homeward  or  had  opportunity  to 
communicate  with  his  family. 

The  nobleman  had  overcome  the  distance  when  he 
found  Jesus  and  made  his  request,  "Come  and  heal 
my  son."  Distance  was  in  the  account,  "Come" ; 
time  also,  "ere  my  child  die" ;  likewise  death,  "for 
he  was  at  the  point  of  death."  So  also  distance, 
time,  and  death  are  to  be  reckoned  with  and  over- 
come by  Jesus.  Once  more  the  nobleman  finds 
something  to  overcome ;  first,  his  own  doubt  when 
his  faith  is  challenged,  then  the  distance  separating 
him  from  his  family,  and  lastly,  the  time  required  to 
travel  that  distance.  As  this  man  proved  equal  to 
his  task,  so  Jesus  proved  equal  to  His. 

By  way  of  instruction,  Jesus  said  to  the  nobleman, 
"Except  ye  see  signs  and  wonders,  ye  will  in  no  wise 
believe."  Faith  was  possible  and  in  place  without 
these  testimonials,  which  are  entirely  subordinate 
and  secondary.  A  personal  knowledge  of  Jesus 
should  be  primary  and  satisfactory  to  any  man. 
His  presence  and  His  teaching  were  enough  to 
awaken  faith  in  Him. 

The  urgent  appeal  of  the  nobleman  and  the  father 
is  his  only  reply.  He  asks  immediate  action  and 
received  just  what  he  asks,  though  the  answer  is 
not  the  exact  counterpart  of  his  request.  Jesus  said 
unto  him,  "Go  thy  way ;  thy  son  liveth."  He  does 
not  "come  down,"  but  heals  without  His  apparent 
presence  and  personal  mediation.  "The  man  be- 
lieved the  word  that  Jesus  spake  unto  him''  and 
went  his  way.  His  conduct  is  the  exact  counterpart 
of   Jesus'    action.      His    faith    is    genuine    as    it    is 

108 


The  Omnipresence  of  Jesus 

brought  into  comparison  with,  and  as  it  is  tested 
by,  the  command  of  Jesus. 

In  his  deep  distress,  the  nobleman  might  have 
said,  "I  will  not  go  down  alone,  I  will  not  go 
without  you."  Jesus  might  have  replied,  "I  have 
told  you  your  son  is  restored  and  there  is  no  need 
of  My  going  with  you."  "Yes,  but  I  came  to  get 
you  to  come  down  and  heal  my  son."  "No,  my 
friend,  you  came  to  get  your  son  healed,  and  I  have 
told  you  this  is  done."  "But  how  can  you  heal  there 
when  you  are  here?"  "It  is  divine  healing  you  ask, 
for  you  have  already  exhausted  human  help."  "Yes, 
only  divine  help  can  bring  relief."  "Then  go,  for 
God  works  where  He  wills  to  work,  and  there  also 
I  work.  I  am  there  as  well  as  here.  The  divine  will 
produces  its  effects  according  to  the  divine  word, 
even  as  the  sun  in  the  material  world  has  a  sort  of 
omnipresence,  silently  ministering  across  millions  of 
miles  to  the  life  of  that  little  flower  that  blooms  in 
beauty  at  your  feet." 

The  nobleman  showed  his  faith  in  the  deity  of 
Jesus  by  asking  help  of  Him  when  all  human  help 
had  failed,  and  by  accepting  healing  in  His  apparent 
absence.  His  faith  moved  him  to  act  with  no  other 
support  than  the  word  of  Jesus  and  his  own  personal 
knowledge  of  Him.  This  was  the  faith  required  of 
him  as  the  recipient  of  the  healing  word  of  Jesus. 

When  the  servant  met  him  on  his  return  journey 
and  told  him  of  the  restoration  of  his  son,  the  noble- 
man assured  himself  that  the  recovery  took  place 
at  the  same  hour  Jesus  said  to  him,  "Thy  son  liv- 
eth."     Once  more  we  are  told  that  this  man  be- 

109 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

lieved,  with  the  added  fact  that  his  whole  family 
attained  to  a  like  faith.  His  was  an  intelligent 
faith,  springing  from  the  perception  of  a  spiritual 
fact  and  from  a  sincere  desire  to  know  the  whole 
truth  in  the  case.  His  was  a  communicable  faith,  a 
faith  that  others  could  share  with  the  same  interest 
and  effect.  An  active  intellect  associated  with  an 
honest  will  may  come  to  Christ  in  distress,  but  the 
one  who  thus  comes  to  Him  will  not  leave  Him 
without  winning  a  spiritual  victory. 

Can  we  imagine  this  nobleman  searching  for  and 
finding  a  different  explanation  of  this  event?  Can  we 
think  of  him  saying,  "Perhaps  the  spoken  word  of 
Jesus  and  the  healing  of  my  son  were  merely  coin- 
cident, but  not  really  related  as  cause  and  effect"? 
Perhaps  the  disease  was  just  at  the  crisis,  and  a 
change  for  the  better  would  have  taken  place  under 
any  circumstances  and  without  any  assistance.  Per- 
haps the  case  had  just  reached  the  turning  point 
where  the  forces  of  nature  reasserted  themselves  so 
that  healing  was  a  natural  consequence. 

If  we  imagined  all  this,  it  would  all  be  entirely 
imaginary  and  in  no  sense  real.  The  nobleman 
followed  reason  as  far  as  reason  went,  and  from 
that  point  he  followed  faith,  not  as  the  contradiction 
of  reason,  not  as  a  narrow  conclusion  of  the  intel- 
lect or  an  abnormal  act  of  the  will,  but  as  the  gath- 
ering of  the  whole  man  into  conscious  unity  in  order 
to  invoke  and  then  receive  the  help  of  God. 

'The  man  believed,"  John  tells  us,  apparently 
losing  sight  of  the  nobleman  and  seeing  only  the 
father,  the  person  who  makes  his  appeal  to  Jesus 
110 


The  Omnipresence  of  Jesus 

for  divine  help  and  who  believes  in  Jesus  as  a  di- 
vine Person.  His  rank  and  office  and  honor  add 
nothing  in  his  approach  to  Christ.  Men  approach 
God  as  men  when  they  come  at  their  best  and  when 
they  win  His  favor.  This  man  accepted  Jesus'  way 
as  a  substitute  for  his  own — Jesus  remains  in  Cana 
while  the  sick  son  is  healed  in  Capernaum.  He  ac- 
cepted the  philosophical  implication  that  Jesus  can 
act  where  He  is  not,  or  that  He  is  where  He  does 
not  appear  to  be,  or  in  other  words,  that  His  power 
and  presence  are  essentially  divine.  In  this  faith 
he  receives  all  he  really  asks  and  is  confirmed  as  a 
believer  by  his  own  experience.  He  has  become 
more  than  he  was  through  this  brief  interview  with 
Jesus.  His  mind  has  developed  by  contact  with 
another  mind  that  has  proved  itself  greater  in  every 
way,  and  the  submission  and  subordination  of  his 
will  gave  opportunity  to  the  greater  Will  to  express 
Itself  in  calm  command  that  contains  no  touch  of 
impatience  and  no  tone  of  violence;  while  yet  It 
works  with  mighty  power  and  brings  again  the 
freshness  of  youth  to  the  blanched  cheek  of  the  dy- 
ing boy.  The  appearance  and  the  words  of  Jesus 
remind  us  of  a  man,  but  his  power  and  presence— 
these  belong  to  God.  Any  man  who  knows  Jesus 
knows  Him  thus :  His  humanity  and  His  deity,  def- 
inite and  distinct,  yet  associated  and  inseparable,  as 
the  poet  has  said: 

"Who  shall  draw  the  mystic  line. 
Which  is  human,  which  divine?" 
The  problem  solved  in  this  paragraph  is  a  problem 
in  psychology.     Faith  is  shown  to  be  the  condition 
111 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

of  Jesus'  action  as  well  as  the  condition  of  the  man's 
receiving  His  help.  Men  find  difficulty  in  bringing 
their  wills  into  submission  so  that  God's  will  may 
take  command.  What  men  lack  is  not  strength,  but 
will,  the  will  that  harmonizes  with  God's  will.  They 
lack  just  what  Jesus  said  He  had,  "My  meat  is  to 
do  the  will  of  Him  that  sent  Me."  When  this  lack 
was  supplied,  why  should  not  the  father's  prayer 
be  answered  and  the  restoration  of  his  son  follow 
according  to  the  will  of  Jesus,  as  expressed  in  His 
word?  Would  any  other  means  or  media  of  action 
aid  our  reason,  our  imagination,  or  even  our  faith? 

Distance  presented  no  obstacle  to  Jesus  in  this 
instance,  and  shall  we  not  infer  that  the  individual 
case  establishes  the  general  truth?  Does  He  not 
desire  us  to  make  this  very  inference?  His  appar- 
ent absence  is  only  apparent,  and  should  never  cause 
us  to  doubt  His  real  presence.  He  acts  where  He 
is,  and  He  is  where  He  acts.  His  presence,  like  His 
power,  transcends  all  human  bounds  and  all  ordinary 
limitations  of  life. 

Nor  is  His  knowledge  thus  limited.  He  surely 
knows  something  of  the  one  He  heals,  and  His 
knowledge,  like  His  power  and  His  presence,  is 
directly  given  and  not  mediated  through  another  in- 
telligence or  another  will.  His  knowledge  is  divine 
knowledge  as  His  power  is  divine  power  and  His 
presence  divine  presence.  As  divine,  His  presence 
is  omnipresence,  just  as  the  presence  of  God  has 
been  shown  to  be  in  the  opening  paragraph  of  this 
fourth  chapter  of  our  Gospel,  and  for  the  very  same 
reason.  God  is  a  Spirit,  and  so  also  is  Jesus,  Whose 
112 


The  Omnipresence  of  Jesus 

invisible  presence  and  unseen  power  bring  healing 
to  the  wasted  body  of  the  dying  boy,  and  whisper 
their  gentle  recall  in  the  ear  of  the  departing  spirit. 


113 


CHAPTER  IX. 
The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus. 

The  wise  man  who  becomes  the  advocate  of  a 
cause  and  the  representative  of  a  doctrine,  under- 
takes to  prove  no  more  than  the  case  requires,  lest 
his  argument  be  weakened  by  an  extra  burden,  and 
lest  he  be  exposed  to  the  attack  of  an  opponent,  fie 
may  even  rest  content  with  assuming  and  asserting 
less  than  the  truth  in  order  to  lessen  the  burden  of 
proof  and  in  order  to  avoid  arousing  personal  prej- 
udice and  successful  opposition.  The  man  who 
claims  to  be  the  advocate  of  a  divine  cause  and  a 
divine  doctrine,  and  who  claims  to  be  a  divine  per- 
son, cannot  assume  this  attitude  toward  the  truth  or 
adopt  this  method  of  self-protection.  His  view- 
point is  central,  and  he  must  stand  out  in  the  open 
with  no  wall  at  His  back.  He  stands  for  the  truth 
in  its  essence  and  its  entirety,  and  to  do  less  or  more 
at  the  behest  of  practical  wisdom,  would  discredit 
His  human  sincerity  and  His  divine  character.  His 
viewpoint  is  that  of  God  Himself,  and  He  must  de- 
clare the  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but 
the  truth,  however  hard  it  may  be  for  men  to  ac- 
cept, however  sure  it  is  to  cross  and  contradict  tra- 
ditional teaching,  however  severely  it  may  test  hu- 
man reason  or  try  religious  faith. 

According  to  the  fifth  chapter  of  the  Gospel  of 
John,  Jesus  is  led  to  declare  Himself  as  the  Son  of 
114 


The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

God,  primarily  in  self-revelation  and  secondarily  in 
self-defense.  His  declaration  met  with  immediate 
opposition  on  the  part  of  the  Jerusalem  Jews.  If 
we  are  inclined  to  ask  why  He  thus  declares  Him- 
self to  men  who  proved  to  be  His  enemies,  let  us 
remember  that  He  is  the  truth  and  cannot  compro- 
mise or  deny  Himself.  Let  us  consider  also  that  the 
whole  truth  is  a  safer  citadel  than  any  part  of  it, 
and  the  whole  truth  is  more  commanding  to  any 
candid  mind.  On  His  own  theory,  His  act  of  heal- 
ing, with  all  its  accessories,  is  perfectly  explained, 
and  the  only  real  point  in  question  is  this,  Can  men 
accept  Him  as  the  Son  of  God?  According  to  the 
prevailing  idea  of  the  Jewish  people  of  that  age,  the 
Messiah,  when  He  came,  would  not  be  a  divine 
Person.  Their  charge  of  blasphemy  was  not  lodged 
against  Him  because  He  asserted  that  He  was  the 
Messiah,  but  because  of  the  other  claim  that  He  was 
the  Son  of  God.  When  we  consider  their  thought 
of  the  Messiah,  we  see  how  empty  of  value  it  is. 
A  Christ  of  human  conception  would  be  useless  and 
irrational  if  not  also  impossible.  Such  a  person 
would  be  no  more  than  a  human  leader,  like  the 
false  Messiahs  of  subsequent  ages,  and  the  only  aid 
he  could  really  render  would  be  to  drive  us  back  to 
the  historic  Christ,  Who  was  sent  of  God  and  Who 
came  to  reveal  God. 

To  Jesus,  truth  must  be  an  organic  whole,  and 
therefore  incapable  of  a  partial  and  imperfect  pre- 
sentation. Part  belongs  to  part,  and  every  part 
completes  and  explains  every  other.  As  an  organic 
whole,  truth  possesses  a  self-evidencing  power.    It 

115 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

satisfies  the  reason  and  demands  the  acceptance  of 
the  will.  The  knowledge  of  the  least  truth,  or 
rather,  the  least  knowledge  of  truth,  leads  on  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  greatest.  The  supposed  viola- 
tion of  the  Sabbath  law  by  carrying  a  bed  at  the 
command  of  Jesus  opens  the  discussion  that  issues 
in  showing  that  the  truth  concerning  the  law  hes 
ultimately  in  the  divine  authority,  based  on  the  di- 
vine Sonship  of  Jesus. 

How  can  we  reasonably  expect  Jesus  so  to  pre- 
sent truth  as  to  avoid  conflict  with  error?  Jesus 
does  not  hold  truth  in  a  passive  and  negative  way, 
but  positively  and  actively.  Men  who  devote  them- 
selves to  error  and  evil  are  not  passive,  but  positive 
and  even  pugnacious.  They  claim  the  right  to  be 
left  alone  to  work  their  own  will,  which  practically 
means  the  right  to  exclude  truth  and  righteousness, 
or  at  least  impose  a  certain  limitation  upon  them. 
When  Jesus  actively  advocated  righteousness  in  op- 
position to  unrighteousness,  when  He  faithfully  fol- 
lowed the  truth  up  into  its  higher  altitudes,  when 
He  declared  the  whole  truth  as  the  right  thing  to 
think  and  do,  and  withal  the  most  rational,  we  are 
convinced  of  the  necessity  of  declaring  the  doctrine 
of  His  own  divine  Sonship,  which  gathered  in  one 
all  the  questions  at  issue  and  offered  the  only  ra- 
tional solution  of  the  problem  before  them. 

The  brief  historic  statement  which  forms  the 
opening  of  the  fifth  chapter,  introduces  the  doctrinal 
discussion  that  continues  to  the  close.  The  sad  con- 
dition of  the  man  who  had  remained  in  the  bonds 
of  his  infirmity  for  thirty-eight  years,  the  supposedly 
116 


The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

supernatural  means  by  which  he  hoped  to  be  healed, 
and  his  confessed  inability  to  make  use  of  the  means 
when  the  opportunity  arose,  bring  to  him  imme- 
diate healing  by  the  spoken  word  of  Jesus.  Perhaps 
no  record  of  the  event  would  ever  have  been  made 
had  not  this  miracle  of  healing  precipitated  a  dis- 
cussion of  Sabbath  observance,  and  this  in  turn 
called  forth  the  question  of  the  character  of  Jesus 
and  His  real  relation  to  God.  Step  by  step  He 
develops  the  doctrine  of  a  divine  Teacher  Who 
traces  His  origin  and  Who  declares  His  filial  rela- 
tion to  God,  the  Father.  In  the  earlier  part  of  the 
discussion  He  speaks  of  Himself  in  the  third  per- 
son, but  in  the  latter  part  He  adopts  the  first  person, 
'T  can  of  myself  do  nothing;  as  I  hear,  I  judge," 
with  no  abatement  of  His  meaning  and  no  change 
in  His  mind. 

The  sick  man  is  accorded  healing  in  an  unex- 
pected way.  The  word  of  Jesus  contains  greater 
power  than  the  troubled  waters,  and  has  the  addi- 
tional advantage  of  being  at  once  available.  Jesus 
quietly  commands  the  sick  man  to  act  like  a  well 
man.  Of  course,  His  command  implies  His  co- 
operation, for  the  will  of  Jesus  is  in  His  word  while 
the  sick  man  exerts  his  will  in  his  own  behalf.  A 
mental  cause  here  produces  both  a  mental  and  a 
physical  effect.  No  physical  agency  appears  in  the 
case,  and  we  know  no  parallel  except  in  the  creative 
acts  that  originate  in  the  divine  will. 

The  man  obeys  the  command  of  Jesus  by  doing 
what  he  could  not  do  before  the  command  was 
given.     The  command  must  have  brought  with  it 

117 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  ability  to  comply,  for  the  infirmity  was  no  mere 
mental  delusion.  He  was  made  "whole,"  and  no 
doubt  arises  in  any  mind  with  reference  to  the  re- 
sult, but  only  concerning  the  Person  Who  produced 
it.  The  miracle  was  acknowledged  without  ques- 
tion at  that  time,  though  in  after  ages  some  have 
denied  the  miracle  and  discredited  the  witnesses 
who  saw  and  accepted  it. 

This  miracle  of  healing  was  performed  on  the 
Sabbath  day,  perhaps  intentionally  by  Jesus,  or  it 
may  be  only  in  the  ordinary  course  of  His  life  and 
work.  A  reformer  finds  himself  under  the  hard 
necessity  of  correcting  false  conceptions  and  arti- 
ficial customs,  however  old  or  widely  accepted. 
The  Jewish  teaching  respecting  the  Sabbath  rested 
securely  upon  the  law  according  to  common  consent, 
and  hence  the  Jews  said,  *Tt  is  the  sabbath,  and  it 
is  not  lawful  for  thee  to  take  up  thy  bed."  His 
ready  reply  satisfied  his  mind  but  not  theirs.  ''He 
that  made  me  whole  the  same  said  unto  me,  Take 
up  thy  bed  and  walk."  Inquiry  brings  out  the  iden- 
tity of  his  Healer,  and  thus  the  issue  is  clearly 
drawn  between  Jesus  and  the  Jews.  The  Jews  ex- 
pect the  man  who  comes  as  God's  representative 
not  to  violate  the  Sabbath  law  as  they  interpret  it. 
They  reason  that  such  violation  discredits  any  man 
who  claims  a  divine  mission.  The  man  who  was 
healed  reasoned  differently.  It  must  be  lawful  to 
carry  his  bed  on  the  Sabbath  because  the  man  who 
healed  him  commanded  him  to  do  this,  and  because 
in  the  very  act  of  obedience  his  healing  came,  He 
118 


The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

who  heals  by  divine  power  must  assuredly  command 
by  divine  authority. 

There  is  no  conflict  in  the  divine  nature.  Divine 
power  is  exercised  only  in  harmony  with  divine 
authority  and  divine  wisdom.  The  kingdom  of  God 
shows  no  internal  cleavage.  The  law  of  God,  in  its 
true  interpretation,  reflects  the  inner  life  of  the 
true  servant  of  God.  If  some  correction  must  be 
made  to  harmonize  men  in  the  kingdom  and  with 
the  divine  will,  the  correction  belongs  to  the  former 
and  liot  to  the  latter.  The  Jews  take  issue  with 
Jesus,  and  propose  to  correct  but  not  to  be  cor- 
rected. They  place  the  law,  the  greatest  thing  they 
know,  across  the  path  of  the  reformer.  They  can- 
not expect  to  meet  Him  successfully  or  bar  His 
progress  without  some  weapon  equal  to  the  occa- 
sion. In  the  popular  estimate.  He  is  greater  than 
they,  but  may  not  the  law  prove  to  be  greater  than 
He?  Is  not  the  law  divine  in  its  origin,  its  maj- 
esty, and  its  might?  Shall  they  not  employ  it 
against  Him?    Shall  they  not  invoke  its  power? 

Jesus  finds  the  man  and  warns  him  to  sin  no  more 
lest  a  worse  thing  befall  him.  Sin  brings  affliction 
as  one  of  its  consequences,  and  also  as  one  of  its 
corrections,  that  the  evil  path  may  appear  evil.  But 
sin  shows  that  a  man  is  wrong  at  the  center,  wrong 
in  his  choice  of  a  leader,  and  as  a  necessary  conse- 
quence, wrong  in  his  interpretation  of  law  and 
life,  of  man  and  his  duty,  of  God  and  His  represen- 
tatives. The  moral  danger  of  the  man  who  was 
healed  may  be  reflected  by  his  ready  and  perhaps 
unkind  report  to  the  Jews  as  to  the  identity  of  his 
119 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

benefactor,  which  incites  the  Jews  to  begin  their 
process  of  persecution  in  self-defense  and  self- 
vindication. 

If  the  teaching  of  Jesus  is  really  fundamental,  it 
must  deal  with  the  great  facts  and  principles  of  re- 
ligion and  life,  and  develop  the  great  doctrines  by 
which  the  mind  conceives  them  and  constructs  them 
in  a  rational  system.  Hence  His  frequent  challenge 
of  friend  and  foe  to  higher  thinking  and  truer  con- 
ceptions of  God  and  man.  We  naturally  suppose 
that  He  only  makes  His  task  harder  for  Himself 
when,  in  His  reply  to  the  Jews,  He  raises  the  ques- 
tion of  His  personal  relation  to  God,  Whom  He 
calls  "My  Father,"  and  with  Whom  He  associates 
Himself  in  the  purposeful  activity  of  work.  *'My 
Father  worketh  even  until  now,  and  I  work."  If 
the  Son  does  all  the  Father  does,  He  must  be  al- 
mighty, omniscient,  everywhere  present,  and,  in 
short,  must  possess  all  the  attributes  of  God.  These 
religionists  readily  conclude  that  Jesus  makes  Him- 
self equal  with  God  when  He  deliberately  calls 
"God  His  own  Father,"  and  associates  Himself  with 
God  in  His  work.  They  are  right  in  their  inference, 
and  Jesus  at  once  proceeds  to  justify  His  statement 
as  true  to  fact,  not  by  modification  or  retraction,  but 
by  free  discussion  of  the  divine  and  human  relations 
of  His  life.  He  sets  forth  his  relation  to  God,  the 
Father,  in  three  different  ways. 

First,  the  divine  Sonship  of  Jesus  appears  in  His 
relation  to  the  Father,  which  is  plainly  personal,  as 
shown  in  several  aspects.  The  Father  is  the  one 
example  for  the  Son,  governing  His  acts,  forming 

120 


The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

His  ideals,  re-enforcing  His  will,  so  that  "the  Son 
can  do  nothing  of  Himself."  Yet  whatsoever  things 
the  Father  doeth,  these  the  Son  also  doeth  in  like 
manner.  His  deeds  are  like  the  works  of  God,  not 
mere  imitations,  bnt  products  of  a  Being  in  absolute 
harmony  with  God.  Then,  also,  the  Father  loves 
the  Son  and  shows  Him  all  Flis  works,  ever  greater 
and  more  wonderful,  a  mark  and  manifestation  of 
personal  life  and  relation.  The  Father  even  shares 
with  the  Son  the  power  to  raise  the  dead  and  to 
bestow  life  upon  them.  As  regards  judgment,  a 
right  which  belongs  to  God  alone,  there  is  a  com- 
plete transfer,  ''He  hath  given  all  judgment  unto 
the  Son,"  a  function  that  is  fundamental  in  moral 
government  and  universal  in  its  scope.  The  reason 
assigned  for  this  transfer  of  function  and  authority- 
is  "that  all  may  honor  the  Son  even  as  they  honor 
the  Father,"  which  unmistakably  means  that  He 
shall  have  the  honor  due  to  God.  The  equal  honor 
argues  an  equal  claim  to  Deity  in  the  just  judgment 
of  God.  Such  are  these  divine  measurements  of 
Jesus.  Such  are  the  terms  in  which  Jesus  sets  forth 
His  personal  relation  to  the  Father.  Such  are  the 
responsibilities  to  which  He  must  respond. 

Second,  the  deity  of  Jesus  appears  also  in  His 
relation  to  men,  a  relation  that  covers  their  future 
as  well  as  their  present  life  and  activity,  that  illus- 
trates His  divine  Sonship  in  the  field  of  human 
experience. 

Any  man  who  hears  the  word  of  Jesus  and  be- 
lieves on  Him  Who  sent  Jesus,  has  life  of  the  eter- 
nal  kind,    and,   having   passed    out   of   death   into 

121 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

life,  comes  not  into  judgment.  Thus  He  stands  re- 
lated to  living  men,  who  are  able  to  benefit  by  this 
relation.  He  is  related  to  the  dead,  the  spiritually 
dead,  for  they  shall  hear  the  voice  of  the  Son  of 
God  and  they  that  hear  shall  live.  For  the  Son  is  a 
source  of  life,  even  as  the  Father,  Who  has  given 
to  Him  this  divine  power  and  also  the  authority  to 
execute  judgment,  the  authority  over  life  in  all  its 
developments,  whether  evil  or  good.  Even  those 
who  are  in  the  tombs  shall  hear  His  voice  and  obedi- 
ently come  forth  in  order  to  take  up  a  kind  of  life 
that  corresponds  with  their  character.  "The  Son 
giveth  life  to  whom  He  will,"  which  offers  evidence 
that  there  is  no  limit  to  His  life-giving  power.  He 
exercises  judgment  as  a  necessary  part  of  His  work 
of  salvation.  Thus  He  becomes  the  one  source  of 
spiritual  life  and  the  one  seat  of  judgment,  and  to 
suppose  that  there  is  another  source  and  another 
seat,  is  contrary  to  reason. 

The  relation  of  Jesus  to  men,  as  set  forth  by 
Himself,  reflects  His  deity  in  its  essence  and  in  its 
outline,  and  if  we  are  disposed  to  admit  His  prem- 
ises, we  come  to  His  conclusion  in  the  ordinary 
course  of  our  thought.  His  relation  to  the  believer, 
to  the  spiritually  dead,  to  all  men  as  the  source  of 
life,  over  which  He  exercises  authority  in  all  its 
forms  of  development,  to  the  dead  whom  He  shall 
call  forth  and  judge,  corresponds  with  no  ordinary 
human  relation,  but  plainly  involve  His  higher  na- 
ture. 

When  He  proposes  to  lift  men  to  a  higher  level  of 
life,  He  makes  it  possible  for  them  to  test  His  words 
122 


The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

by  their  own  faith.  He  enters  the  sphere  of  personal 
experience,  where  every  man  has  the  opportunity 
and  the  means  of  satisfying  his  own  mind.  He  can 
assure  himself  that  he  is  dealing  with  a  divine  Per- 
son Who  exercises  divine  power  in  his  own  individ- 
ual interest  and  with  reference  to  his  own  personal 
need.  We  concede  that  God  only  has  power  over 
death.  He  alone  can  recall  the  dead.  He  alone  has 
life  in  Himself  and  authority  to  execute  judgment. 
His  authority  is  that  of  the  law  and  the  judge  who 
applies  the  law  in  each  individual  case,  deciding 
where  the  law  may  not  appear  explicit  and  interpret- 
ing it  by  its  principle  and  its  purpose.  He  alone 
can  speak  to  the  dead  with  an  authority  they  will 
acknowledge.  If  He  is  related  to  all  men  as  the 
Son  of  man.  He  is  related  to  them  also  as  the  Son 
of  God,  a  spiritual  relation  that  contains  spiritual 
ministries  and  that  is  without  parallel  in  human 
thought  and  history. 

Third,  the  divine  Sonship  of  Jesus  appears  no 
less  plainly  in  His  own  character  and  conduct.  His 
judgment  is  righteous  because  it  rests  ultimately  on 
the  will  of  God.  So  also  must  we  regard  Him  as 
righteous  who  holds  Plimself  in  harmony  with  the 
divine  will.  Righteousness  is  an  attribute  of  His 
being,  and  is  offered  by  Him  in  proof  of  His  Son- 
ship. 

His  harmony  with  the  divine  will  is  essential  and 
absolute,  and  not  merely  assumed  and  external,  so 
that  His  testimony  respecting  Himself  is  true.  He 
requires  the  witness  of  another  than  John,  whose 
testimony   rested   on   his   own   personal  knowledge 

123 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  had  as  its  object  to  aid  men  to  believe — a  wit- 
ness that  is  not  from  men,  that  is  greater  than  that 
of  John,  that  is  manifestly  divine,  being  the  direct 
witness  of  God,  the  Father.  He  points  to  His 
works,  not  as  standing  to  His  credit  alone,  but  as 
being  done  by  divine  appointment,  and  so  attesting 
the  fact  that  the  Father  had  sent  Him  and  that  He 
remained  in  harmony  with  God  in  His  absolute  Per- 
sonality. Such  is  His  interpretation  of  His  works, 
and  the  man  who  rejects  this  interpretation  should 
offer  some  other  theory  by  which  to  explain  them, 
and  with  them  the  conduct  and  the  character  of 
the  Christ.  He  refers  to  the  oral  testimony  of  the 
Father,  given  at  His  baptism,  which  His  present 
auditors  may  not  have  heard.  He  reminds  His 
hearers  that  they  had  not  seen  the  divine  form  be- 
cause they  lacked  the  faith  that  makes  possible  the 
vision  of  God.  Even  the  Scriptures  fail  to  reveal 
God  to  men  who  cannot  find  Jesus  Christ  in  these 
divinely-inspired  writings. 

Jesus  lives  and  labors  on  the  divine  plane  and 
not  only  on  the  human.  He  does  not  receive  glory 
of  men  and  thereby  condition  His  thought  and  life. 
He  has  no  tendency  to  modify  His  higher  life  by 
reason  of  the  lower.  Unlike  Him,  His  Jewish 
hearers  lack  the  love  of  God  and  hence  cannot  see 
God  anywhere,  not  even  in  the  Christ  Whom  God 
has  sent,  nor  indeed  in  the  Scriptures  by  the  most 
careful  search.  They  have  lost  God.  They  have 
forfeited  the  spiritual  viewpoint.  Coming  in  the 
Father's  name,  Jesus  is  rejected,  but  if  another 
comes  in  his  own  name,  he  will  be  received  by  them. 
124 


I'he  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

These  two  mental  states  and  moral  results  are  di- 
verse, contradictory,  and  mutually  exclusive. 

These  Jews  are  centered  too  low.  They  fall  short 
of  the  divine  in  human  life.  Their  supreme  relation 
rises  no  higher  than  citizens  of  this  world,  and  thus 
their  relation  to  God  is  virtually  vacated.  Their  de- 
sire for  honor  from  one  another  prevents  faith  in 
Jesus,  and  the  closely  related  duty  of  seeking  glory 
from  God.  They  are  mistaken  in  regarding  Jesus 
as  their  accuser  before  the  Father,  but  will  event- 
ually discover  that  Moses  occupies  that  office,  for 
the  man  who  really  believes  Moses,  must,  as  a  log- 
ical consequence,  believe  Jesus,  of  whom  Moses 
wrote.  No  line  of  separation  can  be  laid  between 
Christ  and  Moses  except  in  their  thought  and  theory. 

The  righteousness  of  Jesus,  as  a  divine  attribute, 
is  thus  vindicated  by  Him  in  connection  with  His 
personal  relation  to  men,  as  here  explained,  and  on 
the  basis  of  His  relation  to  the  Father  within  the 
circle  of  the  divine  life.  His  divine  Sonship  is 
plainly  implied  and  fairly  affirmed.  It  becomes  the 
explanation  of  His  power  to  heal  a  man  whose  in- 
firmity had  clung  to  him  for  thirty-eight  years,  an 
infirmity  which  is  removed  by  His  word  of  com- 
mand, spoken  on  that  memorable  Sabbath  day.  It 
becomes  the  foundation  on  which  rests  His  right 
to  direct  the  restored  man's  conduct,  contrary  to 
Jewish  custom  and  Jewish  interpretation  of  the  law. 

There  can  be  no  conflict  in  the  divine  nature  or 
in  the  kingdom  of  God.  God's  authority,  as  set 
forth  in  His  law,  cannot  be  pitted  against  God's 
power  as  manifested  in  acts  of  healing  through  the 

125 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

agency  of  Jesus.  Truth  is  consistent  and  the  king- 
dom one,  because  both  are  divinely  constituted. 
Jesus  is  not  in  conflict  with  Moses  or  the  law,  while 
these  Jews  are  plainly  in  conflict  with  both,  and 
hence  also  with  Jesus.  Their  conception  of  the  law 
and  their  attitude  toward  Moses  make  faith  in  Jesus 
impossible.  The  development  of  His  doctrine  only 
adds  to  His  original  statement,  "My  Father  worketh 
even  until  now  and  I  work,"  and,  no  doubt,  added 
at  each  step  to  the  displeasure  of  the  Jews,  who 
sought  more  and  more  to  take  His  life  as  the  only 
means  of  vindicating  themselves  and  upholding 
their  conclusion. 

Throughout  this  argument,  Jesus  nowhere  mod- 
ifies His  statement,  but  only  explains  it  by  expanding 
it.  He  presents  it  from  three  different  angles.  He 
knows  the  difficulty  of  the  Jews  in  accepting  it,  and 
states  that  difficulty  in  plain  terms,  but  knows  no 
way  to  make  truth  easier  or  more  palatable  to  them. 
The  Jews  take  His  words  in  earnest,  evidently 
knowing  what  Jesus  means  and  yet  knowing  no 
rules  of  interpretation  by  which  to  explain  away  the 
force  of  His  argument  or  directly  to  answer  it  when 
backed  up  by  an  undisputed  exercise  of  divine 
power. 

In  the  popular  mind  and  even  in  the  minds  of 
these  Jews,  Jesus  has  won  His  argument.  His  per- 
sonal relation  to  God,  the  Father,  explains  His 
power  to  heal,  and  with  it  His  use  of  the  Sabbath, 
His  conception  of  the  law,  and  His  amazing  asser- 
tions respecting  Himself.  If  we  admit  this  primal, 
personal  relation,  we  can  easily  understand  how  He 
126 


The  Divine  Sonship  of  Jesus 

can  be  all  He  represents  Himself  to  be.  No  wise 
man  asserts  more  than  he  is  able  to  prove.  Even 
the  weak  points  of  a  case  may  be  surrendered  to  ad- 
vantage, as  the  practice  of  Abraham  Lincoln  demon- 
strated, just  in  order  to  win  a  verdict  on  the  essen- 
tial points  of  the  case.  But  Jesus  finds  no  weak 
points  in  His  case,  which  He  feels  called  upon  to 
surrender.  All  are  strong  alike,  for  all  center  in 
His  own  Person.  He  comes  from  God,  honors  His 
divine  origin,  and  maintains  His  filial  relation  to  the 
Father.  When  He  manifests  Himself,  He  manifests 
the  Father.  He  declares  Himself  to  the  Jews  and 
demands  acceptance  on  His  merits.  His  later  claims 
never  fall  below  His  earlier  representations  respect- 
ing Himself.  He  cannot  be  disregarded,  for  He 
has  entered  human  life  and  thought  and  history. 
He  is  a  fact  of  no  ordinary  significance.  The  proof 
He  offers  in  support  of  His  theory  of  His  own  life 
sustains  His  Divine  Sonship  within  the  compass  of 
human  conception,  human  reason,  and  the  experi- 
ences of  human  life. 

No  real  resting-place  can  be  found  for  human 
reason  or  the  human  will  except  in  the  divine  Son- 
ship  of  Jesus,  nor  is  there  any  safer  or  saner  way  to 
secure  the  assent  of  the  human  mind  than  by  the 
plain  presentation  of  this  great  truth,  which  cannot 
be  reduced  to  something  less  or  changed  to  some- 
thing else.  The  knowledge  of  the  Christ  in  Him- 
self and  in  His  relation  to  God,  the  Father,  is  the 
prime  element  of  all  knowing,  whether  it  be  in  the 
realm  of  the  cosmic  order,  the  moral  law,  spiritual 
life,  or  spiritual  agencies.    Only  on  this  basis  of  life 

127 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  knowledge  can  we  rightly  interpret  the  law  of 
the  Sabbath,  or  any  other  law,  and  really  estimate 
aright  the  value  of  the  religious  life.  The  Son  of 
God  gives  to  both  a  definite,  rational,  and  divinely 
real  content. 

If  we  accept  the  divine  Sonship  of  Jesus  in  ad- 
vance and  take  at  once  the  viewpoint  of  our  Lord, 
His  method  and  His  conclusion  appear  to  our  minds 
to  be  both  natural  and  necessary.  If  He  is  sent  by 
God,  shall  He  not  think  and  act  accordingly  ?  If  He 
came  to  reveal  God  to  men,  shall  He  falter  or  fail 
or  perchance  neglect  His  opportunity  for  fear  of 
giving  offense?  If,  indeed,  He  is  the  Son  of  God, 
shall  He  not  make  Himself  known  as  such  and  re- 
veal Himself  in  His  true  character?  For  Him,  His 
conclusion  is  no  more  than  His  thesis  awaiting 
its  development,  and  He  is  at  the  end  just  what  He 
was  at  the  beginning.  Men  only  are  enlightened 
and  changed  by  His  argument.  They  are  enabled 
to  see  as  the  Christ  sees,  at  least,  during  that  period 
when  the  mind  of  Christ  illuminates  their  own. 
They  are  invited  to  take  their  stand  with  Him  and 
occupy  a  central  viewpoint  from  which  to  obtain 
an  insight  into  law  and  life  and  from  which  to  com- 
prehend in  the  compass  of  their  own  thought,  the  di- 
vine Sonship  of  Jesus  as  the  only  key  to  His  conduct 
and  His  character. 


128 


CHAPTER  X. 

Christ  and  Creation. 

Our  author  naturally  notes  the  points  at  which 
Jesus  transcends  human  ability,  the  established 
order  of  nature,  and  the  unseen  realm  of  man's 
inner  life.  He  describes  our  Lord  as  He  acts 
freely  within  these  limits  and  then  as  freely  rises 
above  them,  thus  giving  us  an  impressive  view  of 
His  essential  greatness.  John  gives  us,  in  this 
connection,  a  view  of  Christ  and  creation  not  in  the 
contrast  of  an  atom  and  a  world,  or  of  a  man  and 
a  universe,  but  in  the  close  connection  of  cause  and 
effect,  superiority  and  subordination,  supremacy  and 
dependence.  Christ  is  greater  than  creation  as 
spirit  is  more  than  matter,  and  in  personality  rises 
above  all  other  forms  of  existence.  Mind  is  the 
master  of  multitude  and  magnitude.  The  civil  en- 
gineer computes  his  task  of  construction  and  then 
he  completes  it.  The  astronomer  measures  the  dis- 
tance of  the  planets  and  even  the  stars.  The  soloist 
sings  for  a  thousand  as  easily  as  a  hundred,  and  the 
great  general  commands  ten  thousand  or  a  hundred 
thousand.  If,  according  to  its  capacity,  the  human 
mind  possesses  such  power,  how  much  more  the 
mind  of  God. 

Step  by  step  we  are  led  to  consider  Christ;  first, 
as  a  superhuman  being,  doing  what  man  cannot  do ; 
second,  as  supernatural,  doing  what  the  laws  of 
nature  ordinarily  forbid ;  and,  third,  as  spiritual  in 

129 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  highest  and  best  sense,  doing  what  religious 
leaders  of  all  ages  have  failed  to  accomplish.  He 
is  simply  supreme  in  the  realm  of  spiritual  life  and 
offers  to  all  men  the  satisfaction  of  their  spiritual 
natures.  Thus,  according  to  John's  grouping, 
Christ  appears  over  against  all  the  world  and  all 
humanity,  not  forgetting  the  fact  and  problem  of 
evil.  In  the  midst  of  nature,  with  its  well-defined 
laws,  among  men,  with  their  needs  of  body,  mind, 
and  spirit,  in  the  presence  of  evil  with  all  its  power 
over  free  beings.  He  rises  superior  to  all  and  su- 
preme over  all.  No  wonder,  when  others  were  de- 
parting and  Jesus  inquires  of  His  disciples,  Would 
ye  also  go  away?  Peter  honestly  answers.  To 
whom  shall  we  go  ?  There  is  no  other  rational  con- 
clusion to  such  a  course  of  thinking.  Nor  need  we 
entertain  the  fear  that  we  are  transcending  our  Gos- 
pel or  reading  into  its  pages  what  is  not  there  when 
we  remember  that  the  fourth  Gospel  was  the  last 
to  be  written,  and  that  the  Apostle  John  made  the 
last  contribution  to  the  sacred  canon,  and  therefore 
his  Gospel  presupposes,  in  some  sense,  all  that  has 
gone  before. 

Superiority  of  Christ  is  here  shown  in  three  dif- 
ferent ways :  First,  in  the  field  of  human  action ; 
second,  in  the  realm  of  nature;  and  third,  in  the 
domain  of  mind.  Christ  accomplishes  what  no  man 
could  achieve  under  like  conditions.  He  exercises  a 
control  over  nature  that  man  has  never  equalled. 
He  undertakes  to  supply  man's  spiritual  needs  above 
and  beyond  the  temporary  provision  made  by  Mo- 
ses, the  great  religious  leader  of  the  earlier  economy. 

130 


Christ  and  Creation 

Jesus  necessarily  takes  the  initiative  in  self-reve- 
lation as  opportunity  offers  to  reach  the  minds  of 
the  people.  While  feeding  the  multitude  He  ap- 
pears among  them  as  superhuman;  while  walking 
on  the  water  He  becomes  to  them  supernatural; 
while  He  teaches  them  that  He  is  the  bread  of  life 
He  is  spiritual.  Easily  above  men  and  above  na- 
ture, He  opens  the  way  into  the  spiritual  where  He 
properly  dwells  and  where  men  properly  belong. 

John  reads  and  records  the  mind  of  the  multitude 
in  one  brief  sentence,  they  "followed  Him  because 
they  beheld  the  signs  which  He  did  on  them  that 
were  sick."  The  mental  state  of  the  one  had  be- 
come the  mental  state  of  the  many  under  the  same 
influence  which  here  has  its  popular  measure  and 
shows  its  effect  on  the  popular  mind.  The  multi- 
tude failed  to  assimilate  the  great  truth  of  the  di- 
vine Sonship  of  Jesus  and  dwelt  upon  the  manifesta- 
tions of  His  power  rather  than  the  revelations  of 
His  Person. 

Evidently  the  sign  was  more  to  the  people  than 
the  healing.  It  indicated  the  presence  of  divine 
power  with  the  possibility  of  further  manifestations. 
This  multitude  was  able  to  read  the  evidence  already 
offered,  if  not  properly  prepared  to  appreciate  the 
argument  and  the  conclusion  which  followed  the 
healing  of  the  man  whose  infirmity  had  bound  him 
for  thirty-eight  years.  The  exercise  of  divine  power 
in  their  very  presence  by  a  Person  Who  freely  asso- 
ciated with  them  quickly  caught  the  attention  of  the 
people.  They  understood  this  sign  language  and 
felt  the  force  of  its  meaning  for  them,  even  when 

131 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

they  were  not  candidates  for  healing.  There  were 
no  spectators ;  all  were  personally  interested,  and 
their  mental  movement  was  generally  in  the  right 
direction  and  toward  the  right  conclusion.  But 
men  who  shared  the  benefit  of  Jesus'  power  and 
saw  the  sign  are  yet  able,  the  very  next  day,  to  re- 
vert to  the  bread  as  the  more  important  of  the 
two.  Quick  degeneracy  compelled  Jesus  to  cor- 
rect  this  reversionary  tendency  by  open  rebuke.  *'Ye 
seek  Me  not  because  ye  saw  signs,  but  because  ye  ate 
of  the  loaves  and  were  filled."  Their  first  mental 
movement  is  upward,  but  on  second  thought  it 
changes  to  a  downward  direction.  They  are  willing 
to  sell  their  birthright  and  be  dependents  for  the 
sake  of  an  easy  living,  while  Jesus  seeks  to  lift  their 
thoughts  and  relate  these  people  to  Himself  in  spir- 
itual life.  How  can  He  lift  them  to  His  own  level 
and  then  keep  them  there?  As  we  consider  the 
feeding  of  the  five  thousand,  we  will  find  the  an- 
swer of  Him  Who  works  with  equal  ease  in  the 
kingdom  of  the  spiritual  and  the  realm  of  the  ma- 
terial, and  uses  the  latter  to  point  His  lessons  in  the 
former. 

In  the  feeding  of  the  five  thousand  with  five  loaves 
and  two  fishes,  Jesus  rises  above  the  level  of  the 
human  and  appears  superhuman,  not  in  the  sense  of 
the  heroic,  but  in  the  sense  of  the  divine.  The  mir- 
acle is  more  than  a  man's  work,  even  if  the  man  be 
a  great  man.  It  bears  us  into  the  realm  of  the  di- 
vine, where  divine  power  inevitably  links  itself  in 
our  thoughts  with  the  divine  presence. 

132 


Christ  and  Creation 

Jesus  carefully  cultivates  the  higher  thinking  of 
His  disciples  when  He  inquires  about  procuring 
bread  to  satisfy  the  multitude.  He  suggests  the  or- 
dinary means  of  buying  it,  but  asks,  Whence  ?  This 
question  is  answered  by  Philip,  to  whom  it  was  ad- 
dressed, and  then  by  Andrew,  who  must  have  felt 
that  Philip's  estimate  led  to  no  practical  course  of 
action,  and  lastly  by  Jesus,  according  to  the  meas- 
ures of  His  own  mind.  Philip  counts  the  cost  and 
names  a  sum  that  looks  prohibitively  large  for  them 
to  spend,  and  equally  small  to  supply  bread  for  such 
a  multitude.  Andrew  tells  of  a  lad  who  has  five 
loaves  and  two  fishes,  but  confesses  at  once  the  in- 
adequacy of  such  a  supply.  While  he  is  looking  in 
the  right  direction,  he  seems  to  see  nothing  Jesus 
saw.  His  disciples  have  not  learned  to  read  His 
mind  when  it  is  thrown  open  to  them,  or  to  antici- 
pate His  intentions  which  bear  steadily  in  the  di- 
rection of  benevolent  action. 

How  patent  it  is  that  Jesus  must  act  in  order  to 
be  known  by  men.  He  commands  the  disciples  to 
make  the  people  sit  down.  He  takes  the  loaves  and 
fishes,  gives  thanks,  distributes  to  the  disciples,  and 
so  to  the  people.  We  discover  a  divine  recognition 
of  His  act  as  well  as  the  human  perception,  for  He 
always  works  in  harmony  with  the  will  of  God.  A 
divine  psychology  is  involved  in  the  very  nature  of 
the  case.  His  mind  shows  its  relation  upward  to 
God  as  well  as  outward  toward  men,  and  His  whole 
being  finds  expression  in  this  single  act,  which  typ- 
ifies His  relation  to  the  many  on  the  physical  as  well 
as  the  spiritual  side  of  their  natures. 

133 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Thus,  He  feeds  the  multitude  with  the  loaves  and 
fishes,  and  produces  an  effect  upon  the  minds  of  the 
people  such  as  He  desired,  and  such,  also,  as  He 
dreaded.  They  see  the  result  and  the  sign,  and 
press  to  the  conclusion  that  Jesus  is  the  prophet  that 
cometh  into  the  world.  He  is  God's  spokesman,  His 
representative,  the  Messiah  long  promised  by  the 
prophets.  At  once  they  formulate  their  thoughts 
concerning  Him  and  define  their  duty  toward  Him. 
They  have  initiative.  They  know  what  they  can  do 
for  Him.  They  will  take  Him  by  force  and  make 
Him  king — the  opposite  in  idea  and  principle  of  His 
own  plan  and  purpose — an  earthly  kingdom  for 
Jesus  Christ ! — force  instead  of  love  as  its  governing 
principle ! — it  cannot  be,  it  must  not  be,  and  Jesus 
"withdrew  again  into  the  mountain  alone." 

Revelation — is  it  a  necessity? — revelation  of  the 
mind  and  heart  of  God — revelation  that  men  may 
know  themselves  as  God  knows  them  and  have  in- 
itiative in  harmony  with  His  will — revelation  then, 
and  now,  and  always.  Revelation  must  remain  an 
essential  of  religious  life  while  men  need  to  know 
God  and  themselves  in  relation  to  Him,  while  they 
know  life  in  its  two  aspects,  physical  and  spiritual, 
and  while  they  are  tempted  to  exalt  the  lower  above 
the  higher. 

Jesus  was  very  real  to  the  people  of  His  own  age, 
quite  as  real  as  they  themselves.  He  was  real  to 
them  on  the  level  of  their  own  life,  while  their  dif- 
ficulty was  to  be  real  on  the  level  of  His  superhuman 
life.  To  adjust  themselves  to  His  aims  and  ideals, 
to   be    moved   by    His    impulses   and   purposes,    to 

134 


Christ  and  Creation 

breathe  His  spirit,  to  follow  His  example  with  Him 
ever  before  them,  was  a  task  beyond  and  above  un- 
aided human  nature,  and  demanded  a  new  accession 
of  the  divine.  They  responded  to  Him  perhaps  the 
best  they  could  at  that  time,  but  His  withdrawal 
from  them  shows  His  conception  of  their  mental 
state  and  the  need  of  teaching  them  on  the  following 
day  the  unlearned  lesson. 

The  manner  of  Jesus'  return  to  the  company  of 
His  disciples  prepares  them  for  the  lesson  He  pro- 
poses to  teach.  If  He  is  superhuman,  He  is  also 
supernatural.  The  laws  of  nature  refuse  to  restrain 
Him,  but  rather  answer  in  obedience  to  His  will. 
He  is  not  adrift  in  the  cosmic  order,  but  constitutes 
it  and  sustains  it.  It  never  contradicts  Him,  but 
harmonizes  with  Him,  as  though  its  supreme  law 
was  simply  the  expression  of  His  own  will  as  the 
center  of  all  law  and  the  vital  principle  of  all  life. 
His  walking  upon  the  water  is  not  a  matter  of  skill, 
but  of  will,  the  supernatural  will,  the  divine  will  of 
Jesus.  Man  is  nature's  master  within  limits  and 
bounds,  but  Jesus  carries  His  mastery  to  the  point 
of  supremacy.  As  he  walks  upon  the  water  con- 
trary to  all  known  natural  law ;  as  He  quiets  the 
fears  of  His  disciples  by  His  words  of  assurance, 
"It  is  I,  be  not  afraid'';  as  they  willingly  receive 
Him  into  their  boat,  their  minds  are  being  prepared 
to  receive  His  teaching  by  receiving  Him.  "There 
are  no  fractions  in  a  person,"  says  Rev.  Henry  S. 
Nash.  "There  are  no  fractions  in  God."  The  man- 
ifestations of  His  power  are  manifestations  of  His 

135 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Person,    "His    self-knowledge,    self-mastery,    self- 
revelation." 

In  the  age  of  our  Lord,  the  common  people  who 
mingled  with  Him  accepted  His  humanity  without 
question  and  sought  to  understand  His  deity  as  the 
unexplained  part  of  His  being.  In  our  own  age, 
the  common  people  accept  the  deity  of  Christ  as  be- 
ing equally  attested  and  more  easily  explained  than 
His  humanity.  In  that  age  there  were  menjof  the 
educated  class  who  believed  that  Jesus  was  a  man 
but  not  God,  nor  even  a  man  who  was  sent  by  God. 
In  this  age  there  are  men  of  learning  who  claim  to 
accept  the  divinity  of  Jesus  and  then  undertake  to 
deduce  it  from  His  humanity.  To  them  He  is  super- 
human in  the  sense  of  heroic ;  supernatural  in  the 
sense  of  superior ;  spiritual  within  limits  set  by  hu- 
man conceptions ;  divine  but  not  Deity ;  good  but  not 
God ;  mysterious  but  not  inexplicable ;  a  being  who 
can  be  interpreted  within  the  limits  of  human  knowl- 
edge and  natural  law. 

The  real  problem  before  us,  however,  is  not  the 
explanation  of  Jesus  to  the  satisfacti®n  of  one  age 
or  another,  one  class  or  another,  but  the  entrance  of 
this  superhuman,  supernatural,  and  spiritual  Being 
into  the  history  of  the  race  and  the  inner  life  of  the 
individual. 

When  Jesus  exhorts  the  people  to  work  for  the 
bread  which  abides  unto  eternal  life  and  not  for  that 
which  perishes.  He  reverses  the  course  of  their 
mental  action.  Their  daily  bread  had  become  the 
chief  thing  to  them,  but  now  they  are  invited  to 
make  eternal  life  the  thing  of  supreme  importance. 

136 


Christ  and  Creation 

The  temporal  life  must  be  accorded  a  secondary 
place  if  the  eternal  is  to  become  primary  in  their 
minds  and  hearts.  If  this  change  is  radical  for 
them,  this  fact  only  emphasizes  its  practical  impor- 
tance. If  the  revelation  of  the  mind  and  heart  of 
God  is  a  divine  process,  it  must  have  its  human 
counterpart  in  the  minds  and  hearts  of  men.  If 
life  has  different  levels,  then  eternal  life  can  only  be 
known  by  personal  experience  and  interpreted  in 
terms  of  itself. 

When  Jesus  speaks  of  Himself  as  the  Son  of  man 
Whom  the  Father,  even  God,  hath  sealed,  He  con- 
siders Himself  as  having  man's  essential  nature  and 
standing  at  the  head  of  the  human  race  with  the 
absolute  confirmation  of  the  Father.  As  thus  de- 
fined. He  is  the  source  of  eternal  life  and  the  object 
of  religious  faith.  ''This  is  the  work  of  God,  that 
ye  believe  on  Him  Whom  He  hath  sent."  Faith 
in  Him  gives  entrance  to  God's  kingdom,  and  is, 
therefore,  the  first  act  to  be  required  and  the  great- 
est of  which  any  man  is  capable. 

With  apparent  freedom,  the  people  ask  for  a  sign 
to  enable  them  to  believe.  What  workest  Thou? 
Their  liberty  in  speech  reaches  a  climax  when  they 
suggest  the  miraculous  feeding  of  their  fathers  in 
the  wilderness  with  bread  from  heaven  as  a  very 
appropriate  example  for  Jesus  to  imitate.  Their 
suggestion  savors  more  of  physical  than  spiritual 
blessing,  and  hence  receives  less  consideration. 
They  are  working  out  their  idea  on  their  basis  of 
thought  and  life,  while  He  is  working  out  His 
idea  on  His  basis.     He  is  superior  to  popular  in- 

137 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

fluence,  however  strong,  and  never  suffers  Himself 
to  be  hypnotized  by  the  suggestion  of  another  mind 
and  the  power  of  another  will.  He  is  superior  to 
any  man  and  all  men,  according  to  His  own  state- 
ment and  the  evidence  derived  from  His  own  acts. 

Statement  is  equal  to  argument  when  Jesus  says, 
"It  was  not  Moses  that  gave  you  the  bread  out  of 
heaven."  The  real  source  then,  as  now,  was  God, 
and  hence  He  adds,  *'but  My  Father  giveth  you  the 
true  bread  out  of  heaven."  The  bread  of  God  is 
really  from  heaven,  and  not  merely  an  earth  product 
supplied  through  divine  agency.  The  relatively  di- 
vine is  less  than  the  really  divine,  which  comes  from 
heaven  and  gives  life  to  the  world.  Before  Him 
are  people  who  want  something  and  need  something, 
whom  He  wants  to  have  something,  but  not  what 
they  want.  Their  prayer  must  be  inspired  with  new 
meaning  before  it  can  be  offered  intelligently  or 
answered  in  like  manner. 

Their  immediate  request  for  this  bread  reveals  the 
fact  that  their  minds  have  made  no  perceptible  prog- 
ress in  grasping  the  teaching  of  Jesus.  The  answer 
of  Jesus  confronts  them  with  His  conception,  'T 
am  the  bread  of  life ;  he  that  cometh  to  Me  shall  not 
hunger  and  he  that  believeth  on  Me  shall  never 
thirst."  He  is  Himself  the  divinely-appointed  sat- 
isfaction of  the  human  soul.  Could  anything  be 
plainer?  Could  He  in  any  other  way  lead  their 
thoughts  from  the  material  to  the  spiritual?  Could 
He  better  emphasize  their  real  need  to  their  real 
knowing?  As  Rev.  CorneHus  Woelfkin  has  said, 
''Every  form  of  organic  life  is  supported  by  some- 

138 


Christ  and  Creation 

thing  external  to  itself.  .  .  .  Man  has  a  three- 
fold life.  The  body  is  fed  with  chemical  nutriment ; 
the  mind  with  thought;  the  spirit  with  God."  All 
that  men  find  in  Christ,  His  human  sympathy  sus- 
tained by  His  divine  love,  His  higher  thought  backed 
up  by  His  perfect  example,  His  moral  purity  joined 
with  His  moral  courage,  His  spiritual  life  which 
becomes  a  center  of  spiritual  light.  His  personality, 
human  and  divine,  all  are  bread  to  them.  As  the 
bread  of  life.  He  nourishes  mind  and  spirit  and  de- 
velops a  man  according  to  his  normal  type  and  with 
a  view  to  his  personal  perfection. 

This  multitude  which  was  privileged  to  see  Jesus 
failed  to  believe  on  Him,  failed  to  receive  Him  for 
what  He  was  and  is.  Their  own  preconceived  ideas 
still  mastered  their  minds  and  prevented  the  exercise 
of  faith.  Hence,  Jesus  announces  that  all  come  to 
Him  who  are  given  to  Him  by  the  Father.  The 
divine  within  Him  attracts  men,  but  they  are,  never- 
theless, the  gift  of  God  to  Him  as  He  is  the  gift  of 
God  to  them.  The  Father  gives  to  Him  men  who 
will  devote  themselves  to  Him,  a  supernatural  se- 
lection that  becomes  the  operative  principle  in  the 
Christian  community.  Surely  no  other  principle 
would  be  so  safe  and  so  satisfactory  to  all  concerned 
as  this  one  which  we  may  call  the  principle  of  di- 
vine selection. 

Jesus  welcomes  the  soul  that  comes  to  Him  and 
reads  its  future  in  connection  with  His  own  obedi- 
ence to  the  Father's  will,  which  includes  the  salva- 
tion of  the  believer,  his  resurrection  at  the  last  day, 
and  eternal  life  as  his  present  and  perpetual  posses- 

139 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  t'ourth  Gospel 

sion.  If  He  links  Himself  with  God,  the  Father, 
He  also  joins  the  believer  to  God  in  faith  and  love 
and  obedience.  He  opens  to  men  the  heavens  out 
of  which  He  has  come,  and  invites  them  to  enter 
the  spiritual  life. 

The  Jews  murmured  because  He  claimed  a  heav- 
enly origin  with  all  this  signified.  They  trace  His 
relationship  on  the  human  side  and  quite  forget  that 
the  denial  of  the  divine  side  left  great  facts  unex- 
plained and  unexplainable.  They  fail  to  follow  Him 
as  He  reveals  the  very  constitution  of  the  spiritual 
kingdom,  and  hence  fail  to  come  to  His  conclusion. 
Jesus,  therefore,  repeats  His  unlearned  lesson  re- 
specting divine  life  and  spiritual  attraction,  which 
comes  within  the  purview  of  every  man.  The 
prophet  anticipates  this  fact  when  he  says,  'They 
shall  all  be  taught  of  God"  and  be  required  to  make 
their  own  choice,  not  as  a  nation,  but  as  individuals. 
The  man  who  is  God-taught  will  come  to  Jesus  be- 
cause Jesus  is  God's  nearest  approach  to  man.  The 
Father  never  visuahzes  Himself  to  men,  except  in 
Him  Whom  He  hath  sent  and  Who  "hath  seen  the 
Father"  in  behalf  of  all  mankind.  Their  fathers 
ate  the  manna  in  the  wilderness  and  died,  for  that 
was  only  bread  for  the  body,  but  the  living  bread, 
the  bread  from  heaven,  feeds  the  human  spirit  so 
that  "if  a  man  eat  of  this  bread  he  shall  live  for- 
ever." 

Jesus  changes  His  statement  in  reference  to  Him- 
self as  the  bread  of  life  so  as  to  make  the  Jews'  in- 
terpretation irrational  and  absurd.  He  offers  His 
flesh  and  blood  as  the  food  and  drink  of  men,  by 
140 


Christ  and  Creation 

which  they  may  have  eternal  life  and  become  rightly 
related  to  Him  and  to  God,  the  Father,  the  source 
of  all  life.  They  remain  as  materialistic  as  before. 
No  spiritual  conception  enters  their  minds,  no  di- 
vine idea  dawns  upon  their  thoughts,  no  prophetic 
word  enables  them  to  catch  a  single  glimpse  of  His 
sacrificial  offering  of- His  flesh  and  blood  upon  the 
cross  in  order  that  His  divine  life  might  freely  flow 
into  the  channels  of  human  personality.  Their  reh- 
gion  remains  a  finality  for  them,  law  and  sacrifice, 
form  and  ceremony,  and  seems  easier  if  not  more 
significant  than  the  spiritual  relation  to  Himself 
and  to  the  Father,  which  Jesus  insistently  demands. 
Even  many  of  his  disciples  took  umbrage,  and  many 
went  back  and  walked  no  more  with  Him.  This 
was  truly  a  hard  saying  and  demanded  a  spiritual 
interpretation  or  a  complete  rejection. 

"Doth  this  cause  you  to  stumble?"  is  His  com- 
passionate inquiry.  What  if  the  Son  of  man  should 
ascend  to  heaven  in  your  presence,  would  He  thus 
be  able  to  demonstrate  His  spiritual  nature  and  con- 
vince men  once  for  all  that  His  message  is  spiritual 
in  sense,  if  not  in  form  ?  "It  is  the  Spirit  that  giveth 
life."  There  is  no  material  source  of  life.  "Sci- 
ence is  making  it  clear,"  says  Rev.  John  Douglas 
Adam,  "that  material  things  have  their  origin  in 
the  spiritual  reality  behind  them."  Men  must  look 
to  the  spiritual  for  life,  for  there  is  no  lower  source. 
The  words  of  Jesus  are  spirit  and  life  because  they 
are  the  breath  of  Deity.  They  come  from  a  source 
and  center  of  life,  as  has  been  previously  shown 
and  consistently  maintained.    Yet  some  of  His  own 

141 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

followers  believe  not;  they  remain  unspiritualized 
in  His  presence,  under  His  personal  influence,  and 
while  enjoying  His  instruction.  They  maintain  their 
own  viewpoint  and  fail  to  adopt  that  of  the  great 
Teacher.  But  He  knows  the  attitude  of  each  soul 
toward  Himself  and  requires  no  word  or  act  to  re- 
veal the  mind  of  believer  or  unbeliever.  His  is  a 
divine  consciousness  as  well  as  a  human  conscious- 
ness, opening  to  Him  the  heart  of  God  and  man. 
Superhuman,  supernatural,  and  spiritual,  the  world 
of  the  spiritual  is  His,  in  which  He  lives  and  reigns. 

Men  need  a  divine  impulse  in  order  to  come  to 
Jesus  and  enter  this  spiritual  society.  Jesus  exalts 
the  divine  in  human  life  without  degrading  the  hu- 
man. He  makes  His  appeal  to  men  as  intelligent 
and  morally  free,  yet  He  reasserts  that  no  man  can 
come  to  Him  except  it  be  given  unto  him  by  the 
Father.  The  spiritualizing  of  a  single  soul  reaches 
back  into  the  will  of  God  for  its  first  real  impulse. 
li  the  soul  is  ever  to  come  to  God,  God  must  first 
come  to  that  soul.  H  the  teaching  of  Jesus  at  this 
point  be  true,  as  we  take  it  to  be,  there  is  nothing 
further  to  be  said  with  reference  to  the  origin  of 
spiritual  hfe. 

There  must  be  a  divine  basis  for  a  life  that  is  to 
become  divine  and  really  rise  to  the  level  of  the  life 
of  Jesus  and  so  be  worthy  of  a  place  among  His 
disciples.  He  is  not  the  cunning  leader  of  mystified 
and  mistaken  men.  They  must  claim  or  forfeit  His 
company.  They  must  act  according  to  their  own 
intelligence  and  motive  and  will.  If  the  departure 
of  many  weakens  the  confidence  of  those  who  re- 

142 


Christ  and  Creation 

main,  His  only  word  to  the  twelve  is  this,  "Would 
ye  also  go  away?  Am  I  attractive  to  you  or  really 
repellant  ?  Read  your  own  heart.  Make  your  own 
choice."  Peter  is  ready  to  answer  with  scarcely  a 
single  glance  in  search  of  another  leader.  *'Lord, 
to  whom  shall  we  go  ?  Thou  hast  the  words  of  eter- 
nal life.  And  we  have  believed  and  know  that  Thou 
art  the  Holy  One  of  God." 

Thus  a  human  will  responds  to  the  divine.  Thus 
personal  knowledge  and  intelligent  faith  issue  in 
personal  confession  of  the  co-operation  of  the  human 
will  with  the  divine  Will,  which  results  in  the  sal- 
vation of  a  human  spirit.  Jesus  has  led  at  least  one 
man,  and  perhaps  many,  to  the  desired  conclusion, 
the  definite  recognition  of  His  deity.  Some  men  are 
beginning  to  know  Him.  His  argument  has  not 
been  in  vain.  Peter's  confession  embodies  the  very 
points  in  dispute.  Here,  and  here  alone,  Jesus  rests 
His  case.  God  can  never  consent  to  be  dethroned, 
God  in  heaven  or  God  in  Jesus  Christ,  conversing 
with  men  and  calling  them  into  that  really  religious 
realm,  where  the  human  will  responds  to  the  divine. 

If  we  take  the  confession  of  Peter,  which  ex- 
pressed the  conclusion  to  which  his  mind  came  and 
in  which  his  mind  really  found  rest,  and  then  re-read 
the  sixth  chapter  of  John's  Gospel,  we  will  find  no 
mystery,  none  save  the  deity  of  Christ.  Peter's  con- 
ception of  Christ  simplifies  every  sentence  and  every 
paragraph.  It  is  the  key  that  fits  the  lock  and  opens 
the  door  to  spiritual  life.  Jesus  becomes  repulsive 
to  men  who  have  resisted  the  divine  impulse  and 
rejected  the  divine  appeal,  but  He  becomes  more 
143 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

fand  more  attractive  to  men  who  have  followed  that 
impulse  and  made  it  the  beginning  and  the  basis  of 
a  life  that  is  spiritual,  supernatural,  superhuman. 

When  He  feeds  the  five  thousand  He  is  creative 
without  interfering  with  natural  law ;  when  He 
walks  on  the  water  He  shows  that  the  higher  life 
has  its  higher  law ;  when  He  offers  Himself  to  men 
as  the  bread  of  life  He  points  to  personality  as  a 
final  fact.  He  is  related  to  the  multitude  as  no  mere 
man  could  be  related.  His  viewpoint  is  that  of  hu- 
manity as  a  whole  and  that  of  deity  from  its  depths. 
In  His  own  Person,  He  centers  a  double  conscious- 
ness as  the  Son  of  man  and  the  Son  of  God.  He 
answers  the  questions  and  aspirations  of  the  human 
spirit  in  terms  of  spiritual  wisdom  and  heavenly  life 
because  there  is  no  enduring  answer  on  any  lower 
level.  When  He  feeds  men  by  superhuman  agency 
and  approaches  them  in  supernatural  ways  and  com- 
pels them  to  think  of  Him  as  spiritual  and  divine, 
it  is  that  men  may  know  Him,  not  as  a  master  in 
argument  or  a  mystery  of  power,  but  as  the  Holy 
One  of  God. 

Here  is  One  Who  stands  in  a  definite  relation  to 
creation,  a  relation  that  is  real  and  immediate,  active, 
and  effective.  He  has  not  overlooked  the  presence  of 
evil  and  the  serious  problem  that  awaits  solution. 
He  has  not  ignored  it — for  among  His  twelve  asso- 
ciates is  not  one  of  them  a  devil  ? — but  He  can  over- 
rule it  and  cause  it  to  serve  His  purpose.  Thus  He 
enters  into  the  world  and  yet  rises  above  its  material 
forms,  established  laws,  its  highest  life.  Borne  on 
the  wings  of  John's  inspired  thought,  we  have  seen 

144 


Christ  and  Creation 

the  Christ  as  a  preternatural  Person,  Who,  with 
familiar  features  and  benignant  smile,  looks  down 
upon  us  from  the  very  battlements  of  creation. 


145 


CHAPTER  XL 

The  Messiah  of  Prophecy  and  the  Christ  of 
History. 

The  withdrawal  of  Jesus  from  Judea  and  from 
the  Jews  of  Jerusalem  who  sought  to  take  His 
life,  and  His  temporary  separation  from  His  breth- 
ren who  did  not  believe  on  Him,  occasions  a  period 
of  enforced  and  independent  thinking,  with  refer- 
ence to  His  claims  and  His  character.  Men  had 
been  thinking  and  had  formulated  their  thought 
again  and  again,  but  their  opinions  were  yet  im- 
perfect, lacking  the  deep  conviction  that  endures 
the  test  of  reflection  and  the  opposition  of  those 
in  authority.  Many  preferred  to  believe  in  Jesus 
as  a  private  and  personal  matter  without  any 
clash  of  ideas  or  conflict  of  interests.  But  Chris- 
tian faith  must  be  predominant  if  it  is  to 
be  real,  which  necessitates  its  becoming  public.  Je- 
sus may  be  known  as  a  religious  teacher  in  their 
midst,  but  He  must  also  be  accepted  as  a  spiritual 
force  in  their  minds  and  hearts.  Having  found  en- 
trance there,  the  withdrawal  of  His  presence  from 
the  Jews  at  Jerusalem  and  even  from  His  brethren 
on  their  way  to  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles,  only  ac- 
celerates their  mental  action  concerning  Himself. 
"His  brethren  therefore  said  unto  Him,  Depart 
hence,  and  go  into  Judea  that  Thy  disciples  also  may 
behold   Thy   works   which   Thou   doest.      If   Thou 

146 


The  Messiah  of   Prophecy 

doest  these  things,  manifest  Thyself  to  the  world." 
They  believe  He  should  show  Himself  publicly  if 
He  wants  to  be  known,  while  He  does  exactly  the 
opposite  for  a  time  in  order  to  transfer  their 
thoughts  from  the  external  to  the  internal,  from  the 
material  to  the  spiritual.  They  had  before  them  the 
facts  on  which  to  base  a  conclusion,  and  that  con- 
clusion is  the  next  thing  in  order  for  them  and 
for  Him. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  opinions  expressed 
in  the  seventh  chapter  of  John's  Gospel  are  based  on 
the  conception  of  the  Christ  commonly  held  by  the 
Jewish  people  of  that  age.  Even  the  rulers  and  the 
Pharisees  bring  the  historic  Jesus  and  the  promised 
Messiah  into  comparison  in  their  thought.  They 
tacitly  admit  the  impression  Jesus  had  made  on  the 
minds  of  men  and  consider  the  comparison  in  an 
earnest  effort  to  avoid  identifying  Jesus  as  the 
Christ.  They  propose  to  deny  this  identity  and  to 
refute  His  claim,  which  evidently  has  acceptance 
with  many  of  the  people. 

Jesus  works  out  His  purpose  with  a  master  mind. 
Men  are  not  permitted  in  the  heat  of  their  devotion 
to  make  Him  an  earthly  king  or  even  Honize  Him 
as  an  earthly  hero.  On  the  other  hand,  they  are 
compelled  to  accept  or  reject  Him  for  what  He  is, 
a  representative  of  God  among  them,  a  religious 
teacher,  a  spiritual  leader.  Others  await  events, 
while  He  shapes  events  and  even  causes  them.  Men 
rewrite  history,  but  Jesus  writes  it  in  the  minds  and 
hearts  of  men,  those  unseen  sources  of  history,  those 
hidden  springs  of  human  action.     He  sitteth  king 

147 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

forever,  as  the  Psahiiist  has  said,  and  His  invisible 
scepter  holds  sway  in  the  invisible  kingdom  of  the 
human  spirit.  His  miracles  of  control  amid  the 
conflicting  interests  of  men  impress  us  more  than 
any  miracle  of  healing,  since  these  miracles  of  mind 
include  many  wills,  every  stage  of  personal  life,  and 
every  form  of  social  betterment.  He  easily  takes 
His  place  as  the  one  master  mind  in  the  midst  of  the 
Jewish  people  and  in  the  course  of  Jewish  history. 

Decision  trembles  in  the  balance  throughout  the 
seventh  chapter  of  John's  Gospel.  Men  are  mak- 
ing up  their  minds  with  reference  to  Jesus.  With 
some  their  knowledge  of  Jesus  corresponds  with 
their  ideas  of  the  promised  Messiah,  while  others 
find  reason  to  reject  this  identification.  One  thing- 
is  plainly  apparent,  the  conflict  of  ideas  must  event- 
ually lead  to  a  conflict  of  wills,  with  all  the  conse- 
quences of  open  opposition,  a  prospect  that  damp- 
ened popular  ardor  while  it  deepened  popular  de- 
votion. 

When  Jesus  separates  Himself  from  His  breth- 
ren and  permits  them  to  precede  Him  on  the  way  to 
the  feast.  His  act  is  explained  on  both  sides.  John 
tells  us  that  *'even  His  brethren  did  not  believe  on 
Him,"  thus  vindicating  His  act  from  their  side,  and, 
"then  went  He  also  up,  not  publicly,  but  as  it  were 
in  secret,"  thus  explaining  His  act  from  His  own 
point  of  view.  His  brethren  expected  Him  to  go  to 
the  feast  for  one  reason,  while  the  Jews  expected  to 
find  Him  there  for  quite  another.  He  came,  but  not 
to  "manifest  Himself  to  the  world,"  as  the  disciples 
expected  Him  to  do,  nor  yet  as  the  Jews  supposed 
143 


The  Messiah  of  Prophecy 

without  thought  of  their  opposition.  In  the  midst 
of  the  feast  He  went  up  into  the  temple  and  taught, 
appearing  unexpectedly  to  the  Jews  and  causing 
astonishment  among  His  enemies.  For  the  moment 
He  disarmed  His  enemies  by  taking  them  unawares. 
He  had  given  men  an  opportunity  to  think  of  Him 
m  His  absence.  Now  He  appears  in  the  temple, 
where  men  learn  to  know  God  and  obey  Him  and 
worship  Him,  where  mind  and  conscience  and  will 
are  at  their  best,  where  the  temple  service  and  asso- 
ciations challenge  men  to  be  true.  Here  He  ap- 
pears, and  here  He  teaches  without  fear  of  the  most 
careful  scrutiny  and  the  most  critical  investigation. 
He  places  Himself  before  them  and  thus  invites 
them  to  bring  their  thought  of  Him  and  their  con- 
ception of  the  Messiah  side  by  side  in  order  that 
they  may  reach  a  decision  that  no  longer  trembles  in 
the  balance  but  rests  securely  in  reason  and  in 
faith. 

The  astonishment  of  the  Jews  at  His  literary 
knowledge  finds  expression  in  a  question  that  con- 
tains an  apparent  contradiction.  "How  knoweth 
this  man  letters  having  never  learned  ?"  Before 
them  is  an  unlearned  scholar,  an  untaught  teacher. 
Whence  comes  His  wisdom,  from  some  unknown 
and  invisible  source?  The  point  is  well  taken  and 
Jesus  explains  the  apparent  mystery  by  assuring: 
them  that  His  teaching  is  not  His.  but  comes  from 
God,  the  Father,  Who  sent  Him.  Its  origin  is  di- 
vine, as  He  Himself  comes  from  God.  Both  are 
from  the  one  Source.  His  theory  explains  all 
mystery  and   removes  all  apparent  contradiction, 

149 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

His  knowledge  of  letters  is  freely  admitted,  but  its 
source  is  the  one  point  under  consideration.  The 
practical  test  of  His  teaching,  which  Jesus  offers, 
is  such  as  any  man  is  able  to  apply.  ''If  any  man 
willeth  to  do  His  will,  he  shall  know  of  the  teaching, 
whether  it  is  of  God  or  whether  I  speak  from  My- 
self." The  knowledge  of  good  is  as  possible  as  the 
knowledge  of  evil.  Obedience  is  the  organ  of  spir- 
itual knowledge,  and  obeying  God  is  no  mere  ex- 
periment to  be  tried  once  or  twice,  but  a  principle 
of  life  which  becomes  the  habit  of  the  soul.  The 
will  to  do  God's  will  enables  any  man  to  determine 
the  source  of  Jesus'  teaching,  since  real  knowledge, 
like  real  life,  involves  the  will  as  well  as  the  intel- 
lect. Men  can  convince  themselves  by  the  use  of 
the  appropriate  means,  and  the  ability  to  do  this 
brings  with  it  the  obligation.  Knowledge  fits  the 
knowing  mind  and  needs  no  further  confirmation. 
The  will  of  God  is  the  law  of  our  present  life,  in- 
tellectual, moral,  religious,  and  hence  human  knowl- 
edge can  only  complete  itself  as  it  reaches  the  divine 
will.  It  must  have  a  divine  element  and  a  divine 
source,  invisible,  but  not  unknown.  Thus,  and  thus 
only,  can  a  man  know  to  his  own  personal  satisfac- 
tion, know  with  a  knowledge  that  has  no  unex- 
plained elements,  that  is  complete  and  also  consist- 
ent, that  harmonizes  with  the  divine  Mind  and  the 
divine  knowledge. 

There  is  nothing  strange  to  Jesus  in  this  reference 

of  the  will  of  man  to  the  will  of  God  in  order  to 

secure  true  mental  action.    He  tests  Himself  by  the 

same  standard.    He  assures  us  that  He  is  not  self- 

150 


The  Messiah  of  Prophecy 

centered,  but  God-centered,  and  that  this  is  the 
secret  of  His  being  true,  with  no  touch  or  taint  of 
unrighteousness.  Interior  goodness  must  be  good 
through  and  through  and  all  around,  while  ex- 
terior goodness  can  hardly  cover  the  surface,  be- 
cause it  is  apparent  rather  than  real.  "Goodness  is 
goodness  always,"  says  Rev,  Stewart  Means,  ''and 
any  increase  in  it  means  not  by  dimensions  or  meas- 
urement, but  vividness,  intensity,  and  reality.  It  is 
without  succession.  There  was  no  time  when  good- 
ness became  goodness.  It  neither  increases  nor  di- 
minishes by  age  or  a  term  of  years.  So  with  all 
moral  and  spiritual  facts."  They  carry  us  back  to 
the  divine  nature  and  the  divine  will,  and  hence  Je- 
sus shows  that  His  teaching,  like  His  goodness, 
finds  its  source  and  center  in  God. 

And  now  the  great  Teacher  asks  two  questions 
of  grave  import:  "Did  not  ]\Ioses  give  you  the  law. 
and  yet  none  of  you  doeth  the  law?  Why  seek  ye 
to  kill  ]\Ie?"  If  Moses  gave  the  law,  his  professed 
followers  are  in  duty  bound  to  obey  it.  The  law 
forbids  what  the  representatives  of  the  law  desire 
to  do,  namely,  to  kill.  Here  is  a  real  contradiction. 
The  human  idea  bears  wide  of  the  divine  thought. 
Disobedience  reveals  a  darkened  and  disordered 
state  of  mind.  Law  spells  order,  and  the  disregard 
of  law  spells  disorder.  And  so  it  appears  that  these 
representatives  of  the  law  have  less  respect  for 
the  law  than  the  One  Whom  they  charge  with  the 
violation  of  the  law  of  the  Sabbath. 

The  disrespectful  answer  of  the  multitude  seems 
to  produce  no  effect  on  the  mind  of  Jesus,  Who  cites 

151 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

His  marvelous  work  of  healing,  which,  though  per- 
formed on  the  Sabbath  day,  has  as  much  reason  to 
justify  it  as  the  circumcision  of  a  man  on  the  Sab- 
bath in  obedience  to  the  command  of  Moses.  Cir- 
cumcision was  adopted  by  Moses  and  not  originated 
by  him.  If  it  was  the  sign  of  the  old  covenant  reg- 
istered in  the  flesh,  could  it  be  more  sacred  than 
making  a  man  every  whit  whole  as  the  sign  of  a  new 
order  and  a  new  covenant?  If  this  is  a  new  inter- 
pretation of  law  and  life,  does  it  not  honor  and 
enrich  both?  Healing  by  divine  touch  on  the  Sab- 
bath day  violates  neither  the  spirit  nor  the  letter  of 
the  law,  but  carries  with  it  its  own  vindication  and 
leaves  their  anger  without  justification.  Mere  ap- 
pearances should  not  govern  the  decisions  of  men, 
for  men  are  called  upon  to  judge  righteous  judg- 
ment. They  must  consider  the  origin  of  their  teach- 
ing, the  basis  of  their  decisions,  and  the  source  of 
their  conduct.  The  question  of  origin  comes  home 
to  men  as  truly  as  to  Jesus,  and  involves  their  teach- 
ing and  their  opinions,  their  conduct  and  their  char- 
acter. 

Certain  citizens  of  Jerusalem  consider  the  case  in 
a  compromising  way.  They  ask  whether  this  is  not 
He  whom  they  seek  to  kill,  citing  the  fact  of  His 
speaking  openly  in  the  temple,  while  His  opposers 
say  nothing  to  Him,  and  concluding  with  a  question 
to  which  they  offer  no  answer.  "Can  it  be  that  the 
rulers  indeed  know  that  this  is  the  Christ?"  The 
rulers  had  stemmed  the  current  of  faith  in  Jesus, 
as  men  well  knew,  but  had  they  at  last  given  over 
their  opposition?  Had  they  consented  to  His  doc- 
152 


The  Messiah  of  Prophecy 

trine  and  recognized  Him  as  the  Messiah  promised 
l)y  the  prophets?  To  citizens  of  the  Holy  City, 
these  were  supremely  interesting  questions  thai 
demanded  an  immediate  answer,  an  answer  worthy 
of  the  chosen  people  to  whom  the  law  had  been  en- 
trusted, who  had  been  educated  by  ages  of  spiritual 
leadership,  and  who  had  enjoyed  the  protecting  care 
of  divine  providence. 

If  the  citizens  referred  to  sincerely  suggest  that 
Jesus  answers  to  their  conception  of  the  Christ  and 
may  therefore  be  received  as  such  even  by  the 
rulers,  who,  till  this  time,  have  rejected  His  claims, 
they  also  offer  a  reason  for  rejecting  Him.  ''When 
the  Christ  cometh,  no  one  knoweth  whence  He  is." 
The  Jews  claim  to  know  the  origin  of  Jesus,  while 
Jesus  claims  that  He  alone  knows  His  own  origin. 
'T  am  not  come  of  Myself,  but  He  that  sent  Me  is 
true,  Whom  ye  know  not."  He  asserts  and  reasserts 
this  fact  as  fundamental  in  His  life  and  in  any  true 
knowledge  of  Him.  He  moves  among  them,  not 
simply  as  a  man  and  on  His  own  account.  He  per- 
forms His  works  not  merely  because  of  His  moral 
uprightness  or  by  divine  permission.  He  comes  in 
fulfillment  of  a  definite,  divine  purpose,  which  is  im- 
bedded in  the  history  of  the  Jewish  people.  His 
works,  His  teaching.  His  character,  all  reveal  a  di- 
vine element  that  points  unmistakably  to  His  divine 
origin. 

The  desire  to  arrest  Him  and  prevent  further  dis- 
cussion stirred  in  many  minds,  but  no  leader  had  the 
courage  to  lay  hands  upon  Him.  His  hour  had  not 
come,  and  men  unwittingly  respect  the  protecting 

153 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

providence  that  guarded  Him  from  their  attacks. 
Many  of  the  multitude  believed  on  Him,  and  of- 
fered as  a  reason  for  their  faith,  that  the  Christ 
could  not  be  expected  to  do  more  signs  than  Jesus 
had  already  done.  But  faith  on  the  part  of  the  peo- 
ple meant  opposition  on  the  part  of  the  Pharisees, 
who  sent  officers  to  take  Him.  They  propose  to 
strike  Him  at  His  weakest  point,  to  win  by  force 
what  they  failed  to  win  by  argument.  They  are 
keenly  intelligent,  according  to  their  theory  of 
thinking,  and  as  clearly  irrational  according  to  the 
outcome  of  their  acts.  Can  they  restrain  the 
thoughts  of  the  people  and  set  limits  to  the  mind 
of  Jesus?  Are  they  not  presuming  to  govern  the 
very  kingdom  they  have  steadfastly  refused  to  en- 
ter? Can  their  will  confront  and  subdue  the  will  of 
God?  Such  are  the  irrational  implications  of  their 
actions  as  they  seek  to  stem  the  tide  of  popular 
sentiment  in  favor  of  the  acceptance  of  Jesus  as  the 
Christ. 

They  might  spare  themselves  the  effort  to  remove 
Him  from  their  midst  if  they  took  His  words  as  true. 
"Yet  a  little  while  am  I  with  you,  and  I  go  unto 
Him  that  sent  Me."  His  origin  in  God  assures  His 
return  to  God.  Origin  governs  the  destiny  of  any 
man,  even  if  he  has  perverted  his  being  and  "goes 
to  his  own  place."  His  thought  moves  out  into  the 
invisible  realms  of  the  mind  and  spirit,  while  these 
Jews  cannot  think  beyond  the  horizon  or  beneath 
the  hour  indicated  on  the  dial.  They  are  inapt  be- 
cause unwilling  pupils,   and  make  no  progress  in 

154 


The  Messiah  of  Prophecy 

the  comprehension  of  Jesus'  teaching  as  an  expres- 
sion of  the  thought  of  God  and  the  will  of  God. 

On  the  last,  the  great  day  of  the  feast,  Jesus  pub- 
licly offers  to  any  one  who  desires  it,  the  water  of 
life,  that  the  recipient  may  be  satisfied  and  may  also 
become  a  source  of  life  to  others.  "This  spake  He 
of  the  Spirit,  Which  they  that  beHeved  on  Him 
were  to  receive"  after  His  glorification.  Thus  His 
presence  explains  the  past  and  also  the  future  into 
which  He  looks  with  unhindered  vision.  He  opens 
human  life  and  human  history  instead  of  closing 
both,  as  men  have  supposed.  He  is  the  alpha  of 
spiritual  life,  and  no  man  need  fear  that  his  devo- 
tion to  Christ  will  bar  his  path  or  belittle  his  char- 
acter. Men  are  not  required  to  steady  the  ark  of 
God,  but  simply  to  obey  God  and  minister  in  His 
name.  This  bold  appeal  of  Jesus  on  the  great  day 
of  the  feast  must  have  had  the  Messianic  ring,  and 
must  have  conveyed  to  many  minds  the  assurance 
that  they  had  heard  the  voice  of  the  historic  Christ. 

As  John  the  Baptist  had  declared  concerning  Je- 
sus, so  history  records,  He  must  increase;  increase 
in  the  estimation  of  candid  men  till  they  assert, 
'This  is  of  a  truth  the  prophet,"  "This  is  the 
Christ" ;  increase  in  the  opinion  of  the  chief  priests 
and  Pharisees  who  chide  the  officers  they  had  sent, 
"Why  did  ye  not  bring  Him?"  To  them  He  was  be- 
coming a  subject  of  fear,  while  to  the  people  He 
was  becoming  an  object  of  faith.  The  officers  de- 
fend their  conduct  by  means  of  their  confession, 
"Never  man  so  spake,"  only  to  receive  the  taunt, 
"Are  ye  also  led  astray?     Hath  any  of  the  rulers 

155 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

believed  on  Him,  or  of  the  Pharisees?"  Here,  at 
least,  is  a  solid  front,  yet  not  so  solid  as  it  might 
at  first  appear,  for  Nicodemiis,  who  had  come  to 
Him  by  night,  makes  inquiry  that  reveals  a  rational 
state  of  mind,  if  not  also  a  real  personal  interest. 
Jesus  compels  consideration  on  the  part  of  each 
man  and  the  acceptance  of  the  truth  rests  with  the 
individual.  The  Christ  and  the  individual  man, 
these  are  the  final  facts,  and  not  the  organized 
church  or  civil  government  or  any  intermediate 
agency.  Rulers  may  resist  the  approach  of  the 
truth  and  reject  its  divine  authority,  but  they  cannot 
arrest  its  progress.  It  is  irresistible  because  it  is 
divine,  because  it  is  spiritual,  and  not  subject  to  ar- 
rest and  imprisonment.  Like  God,  Jesus  respects 
man's  moral  freedom  and  appeals  to  his  intelligence. 
Men  must  think  and  decide  for  themselves.  If  they 
accept  the  truth  they  must  accept  it  as  men  divinely 
constituted  and  capable  of  surveying  their  own  life, 
past,  present,  and  future.  Hence  the  truth  can 
violate  no  law  of  God,  for  both  come  from  God. 
They  have  one  origin.  Law  is  the  negative  form  of 
which  truth  is  the  positive  reality.  Law  requires, 
truth  is ;  law  demands,  truth  does ;  law  directs,  truth 
inspires;  law  limits,  truth  liberates.  The  truth,  as 
we  see  it  in  Jesus,  is  the  fulfillment  of  the  law,  so 
that  we  find  in  Jesus  the  content  of  the  law  and  of 
the  Messianic  conception  of  the  prophets.  No 
doubt  concerning  the  origin  of  Jesus  or  the  Person 
of  Christ  need  distress  us.  If  the  humanity  of  Jesus 
has  first  place  in  our  thought,  it  cannot  hide  His 
deity.  If  His  deity  impresses  us  most,  we  cannot 
156 


The  Messiah  of  Prophecy 

lose  sight  of  His  humanity.  The  Person  of  Christ 
makes  itself  known  in  His  words  and  deeds,  which 
have  the  same  origin  as  Himself  and  are  lower  and 
limited  expressions  of  the  one  divine  Mind.  He 
comes  as  the  truth  in  personality,  the  perfect  ex- 
pression of  the  mind  of  God  and  the  perfect  revela- 
tion of  His  holy  will. 

Thus,  Jesus  stands  before  us  as  the  Christ  of  his- 
tory and  the  Messiah  of  prophecy,  the  personal  his- 
toric realization  of  the  divine  promise.  If  our  con- 
ception of  the  Christ  has  been  realized  in  Jesus,  we 
must  then  interpret  nature  and  the  supernatural, 
life  and  death,  being  and  becoming,  the  present  and 
the  future,  all  things  according  to  this  new  key  to 
knowledge  and  existence.  If  we  fail  to  make  this 
identification,  we  have  yet  to  interpret  Jesus  without 
His  aid  and  without  His  theory  of  His  nature  and 
origin,  we  have  yet  to  accept  ourselves  as  facts 
without  any  satisfactory  theory  of  our  own  exist- 
ence. 

The  presence  of  Jesus  among  the  people.  His 
teaching,  and  His  miracles,  were  evidently  having 
their  effect  upon  their  thought  and  life.  A  com- 
parison of  the  Messiah  of  prophecy  as  they  con- 
ceived Him,  and  the  Christ  of  history  as  they  knew 
Him,  became  a  subject  of  personal  interest.  The 
two  are  identified  as  one  and  the  same  Person,  seen 
from  two  viewpoints,  prophecy  and  fulfillment, 
according  to  many  of  His  contemporaries,  while 
others  dispute  this  conclusion  without  offering  a 
satisfactory  substitute.  Men  of  all  classes  were  re- 
considering and  working  over  their  systems  of  re- 

157 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

ligious  thought  and  life,  and  slowly  coming  to 
certain  theoretical  conclusions.  A  practical  conclu- 
sion was  being  reached  also,  for  Jesus  was  actually 
governing  the  thought  and  action  of  many,  and  as 
plainly  influencing  the  thinking  of  all  men.  Neu- 
trality with  reference  to  Jesus  was  becoming  un- 
tenable ground,  and  the  Jewish  rulers  were  fast 
becoming  unprogressive,  illogical,  and  hostile  to  the 
truth.  Prophecy  and  history  could  not  be  turned 
back  and  the  progress  of  the  race  arrested  by  men 
who  stood  for  a  system  that  had  served  its  day  and 
had  reached  its  limit  of  spiritual  vitality  and  religious 
leadership.  As  the  living  bud  expands  at  the  ap- 
proach of  spring  and  pushes  aside  its  winter  wrap- 
pings, so  the  living  Christ  manifests  His  superiority 
to  all  the  outward  aids  and  accessories  of  religion. 
The  promise,  "in  thy  seed  shall  all  the  families  of  the 
earth  be  blessed,"  must  have  its  fulfillment  in  his- 
tory, whether  or  not  the  people  to  whom  it  was 
given  have  prepared  themselves  for  it,  can  appre- 
ciate its  real  meaning,  or  will  lend  themselves  to  its 
accomplishment.  The  failure  of  no  individual  or 
nation  can  change  the  divine  purpose  or  render  it 
ineffectual.  If  the  promise  of  God  called  forth  less 
of  human  appreciation  and  co-operation  than  we 
should  have  expected,  it  was,  nevertheless,  fulfilled. 
It  is  God's  own  thought  and  has  His  own  interpreta- 
tion. God  gives  His  Messiah  to  the  Gentile  as  well 
as  to  the  Jew.  As  we  see  Him  in  history,  He  meas- 
ures up  to  the  promise  and  makes  His  appeal  to  all 
the  families  of  the  earth.  The  Messiah  of  prophecy 
and  the  Christ  of  history  are  one  and  the  same  Per- 
158 


The  Messiah  of  Prophecy 

son,  and  when  we  accept  Jesus  Christ  as  the  Messiah 
of  the  Jew,  we  discover  that  He  is  the  Christ  of  all 
mankind. 


159 


CHAPTER  XII. 

A  Great  Sinner  and  a  Great  Savior. 

The  authenticity  of  the  paragraph  which  now 
comes  before  us  has  been  questioned  from  an  early 
period  in  the  history  of  the  Christian  Church.  No 
means  have  been  found  to  decide  the  matter,  and  to- 
day it  remains  an  open  question.  The  translators 
have  uniformly  indicated  their  knowledge  of  this 
fact,  but  have  not  deemed  it  their  duty  to  exclude 
the  passage  or  even  remove  it  from  the  place  it  has 
occupied.  Arguments  for  and  against  its  authen- 
ticity have  been  advanced,  but  neither  side  has  been 
able  to  win  the  acceptance  of  the  other.  The  case 
remains  undecided,  but  as  it  is  not  our  purpose  to 
consider  questions  of  genuineness,  variations  of 
text,  or  chronological  difficulties,  we  accept  the  Gos- 
pel as  it  comes  to  us  from  the  translator,  with  this 
passage  included  and  demanding  interpretation  from 
our  viewpoint. 

If  this  paragraph  rightfully  belongs  in  the  Gospel 
of  John,  there  are  reasons  to  believe  it  belongs  just 
where  it  is.  Its  realism  may  grate  on  our  finer  feel- 
ings, but  in  that  age  no  such  consideration  would 
hinder  the  enactment  of  such  an  event  as  is  here 
described.  Perhaps  we  should  expect  just  such  an 
attempt  when  we  consider  the  other  efforts  to  entrap 
the  Master :  the  Pharisees'  question  respecting  trib- 
ute money,  the  lawyer's  question  about  the  great 

160 


A  Great  Sinner  and  a  Great  Savior 

commandment,  and  the  Sadducees'  question  con- 
cerning the  resurrection.  Perhaps  we  should  ex- 
pect just  such  a  test  in  the  temple,  especially  after 
the  discussion  of  the  seventh  chapter,  in  which,  only 
the  day  before,  Jesus  had  asserted  and  maintained 
His  claim  as  the  Christ,  the  promised  ^lessiah.  If 
they  cannot  silence  Him  by  argument,  why  may  not 
the  practical  method  yield  the  required  result?  A 
woman,  guilty  of  violating  the  seventh  command- 
ment, is  brought  into  the  presence  of  Jesus  as  He 
taught  in  the  temple,  and  He  is  asked  to  pass  sen- 
tence upon  her.  They  brought  her  to  Jesus,  not  for 
her  relief,  but  for  His  embarrassment,  not  for  her 
salvation,  but  for  His  condemnation.  Theoretically 
He  established  His  case  beyond  their  power  to  over- 
throw. Could  He  do  it  practically  ?  Could  He  cope 
with  stubborn  facts  as  successfully  as  He  could 
contend  with  stubborn  theorists  whose  theory  was 
made  to  fit  their  practice  ?  They  brought  this  guilty 
woman  that  they  might  ''try  Him,  that  they  might 
have  whereof  to  accuse  Him."  They  expect  Him 
to  fail  at  some  point  and  so  weaken  His  own  claim. 
The  discussion  of  the  day  before  had  sent  every 
man  to  his  own  house  with  something  of  an  in- 
dividualistic feeling,  while  Jesus  went  unto  the 
Mount  of  Olives  with  a  very  diflferent  state  of  mind. 
If  He  communed  with  nature,  and  with  God,  His 
soul  did  not  selfishly  exclude  men  from  His  thoughts 
as  though  they  were  irresponsible  and  unworthy. 
Here,  alone,  amid  the  olive  trees  and  beneath  the 
glittering  stars.  He  communes  with  nature  and  with 
God  as  though  He  filled  the  gap  between  with  His 

161 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

own  humanity.  Here  He  finds  rest  for  His  wearied 
body  and  refreshment  for  His  drooping  spirit  In 
silent  meditation  and  prevailing  prayer.  H  He  is 
individualistic,  He  is  social  also,  social  to  the  point 
of  racial  interest  and  activity. 

When  in  the  morning  the  people  meet  Him  again 
in  the  temple,  Jesus  sat  down  and  taught  them  with 
the  hopefulness  of  a  teacher  and  the  easy  manner  of 
one  who  is  master  of  the  whole  situation.  As  a 
teacher  He  has  hearers.  The  people  press  close  to 
Him.  They  are  interested.  But  the  scribes  and 
Pharisees  are  not  willing  to  be  set  aside.  They  press 
into  His  presence  and  propose  to  direct  the  course 
of  His  instruction.  They  place  in  the  midst  a  wom- 
an taken  in  the  act  of  adultery,  and  raise  a  ques- 
tion of  the  law  once  more.  ''Now  in  the  law  Mo- 
ses commanded  us  to  stone  such ;  what  sayest  Thou 
of  her?"  Here  is  a  convicted  sinner,  and  here  is 
the  law  in  the  case- — shall  the  law  be  enforced  and 
the  sinner  slain?  Thus  they  make  trial  of  the 
great  Teacher — will  He  order  them  to  kill  the  wom- 
an and  so  infringe  on  Roman  right,  or  will  He 
permit  the  violation  of  the  law  and  so  discredit  its 
authority  ? 

But  Jesus  does  neither.  He  is  not  pushed  into  a 
corner  by  their  ingenuity  or  placed  in  a  dilemma  by 
superior  intelligence.  He  simply  stooped  down  and 
with  His  finger  wrote  on  the  ground.  His  silence 
silenced  their  souls  sufficiently  to  enable  them  to 
hear  the  voice  of  conscience  once  more.  His  writing 
on  the  ground  seems  to  have  had  an  effect  like  the 
writing  on  the  wall   in  the  palace   of   Belshazzar, 

162 


A  Great  Sinner  and  a  Great  Savior 

which  brought  conviction  to  a  dissolute  ruler. 
There  is  a  silence  of  the  soul  that  liberates  the  con- 
science, however  it  may  have  been  bound  by  custom 
or  stupefied  by  deliberate  acts  of  disobedience,  and 
thus  opens  the  soul  to  a  real  sense  of  the  divine 
presence. 

They  press  their  question  and  receive  His  answer, 
which  concerns  themselves  quite  as  much  as  the 
woman,  or  even  Jesus,  Whom  they  proposed  to  try. 
"He  Hfted  up  Himself,  and  said  unto  them.  He 
that  is  without  sin  among  you,  let  him  first  cast  a 
stone  at  her,"  The  sinner  before  them  may  well 
remind  them  of  the  sinner  within.  If  sinner  can 
punish  and  even  destroy  sinner,  according  to  the 
law  of  God,  how  can  the  kingdom  of  God  be  built? 
Such  is  not  the  process  authorized  by  Moses;  such 
is  not  the  basis  of  divine  law  and  divine  justice; 
such  is  not  the  method  of  human  redemption.  Law, 
as  an  external  thing,  must  give  way  to  law  as  it  is 
written  in  the  heart.  There  can  be  no  external 
basis  for  moral  obligation  and  this  Jesus  demon- 
strates beyond  a  doubt. 

The  sinless  Christ  renders  His  decision  with  the 
same  moral  judgment,  divine  authority,  and  irre- 
sistible power  which  ought  to  characterize  His 
sentence  on  the  judgment  day.  His  statement  was 
final  for  Him  and  for  them  also.  Nothing  more  re- 
mained to  be  said  on  either  side,  but  something  re- 
mained to  be  done  by  them,  if  not  by  Him.  They 
had  insisted  on  judgment  in  this  test  case,  which 
they  themselves  had  framed,  and  judgment  they  re- 
ceived, the  judgment  of  the  Christ  which  ended  this 

163 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

discussion  respecting  the  law  at  once  and  forever. 
And  again  Jesus  stooped  down  and  with  his  fin- 
ger wrote  on  the  ground,  while  the  scribes  and 
Pharisees  went  out,  one  by  one,  beginning  from  the 
eldest  even  unto  the  last,  all  self-condemned  sinners. 
Unitedly  they  came,  separately  they  go.  There  has 
been  a  dissolution.  They  admit  defeat.  Sin  is  a 
universal  fact  in  the  personal  experience  of  these 
representatives  of  the  law,  perhaps  the  very  sin  they 
had  assumed  to  condemn.  Apparently  they  had  not 
noted  its  presence  in  their  own  hearts  or  tested  its 
power.  Only  the  presence  of  Jesus,  silent,  sinless, 
serene,  revealed  to  them  their  own  inner  state.  He 
has  easily  outdone  them  and  they  depart,  beaten  in 
argument  and  convicted  by  their  own  consciences. 

No  man  remains  to  condemn  the  accused  woman, 
the  guilty  woman,  the  woman  who  had  not  denied 
her  guilt,  the  woman  who  had  addressed  Jesus  as 
Lord  with  a  degree  of  respect,  if  not  also  of  rever- 
ence and  worship.  No  man  condemned  her,  but 
this  is  not  a  sufficient  vindication.  When  Jesus 
says  to  her,  "Neither  do  I  condemn  thee:  go  thy 
way ;  from  henceforth  sin  no  more,"  this  wayward 
woman  must  have  rejoiced  with  a  sense  of  relief 
as  though  some  heavy  burden  had  been  lifted  from 
her  mind  and  a  lighter  one  put  in  its  place,  the  task 
of  living  an  unsinning  life.  Jesus  palliates  no  sin, 
that  of  the  woman  or  that  of  her  accusers.  Palli- 
ation is  not  a  good  substitute  for  pardon,  because 
it  has  just  the  opposite  effect  upon  men,  namely,  to 
fix  more  firmly  the  burden  and  guilt  of  sin  upon 
them.  Sin  is  shown  to  be  evil  and  also  universal 
164 


A  Great  Sinner  and  a  Great  Savior 

among  men  since  the  representatives  of  religion 
have  publicly  confessed  that  they  are  under  its  do- 
minion. These  unrepentant  sinners  retire  from  the 
presence  of  this  great  Savior  with  no  word  of  par- 
don and  no  divine  direction  for  their  future  guid- 
ance, while  this  one  repentant  sinner  receives  both 
from  Him.  Jesus  Christ  is  not  the  shadow  of  God. 
He  is  the  very  substance  of  deity  and  humanity  in 
the  midst  of  self-satisfied  religionists,  in  relation  to 
an  accused  and  repentant  sinner,  in  the  temple  at 
Jerusalem,  where  devout  souls  gathered  to  pay  their 
vows  to  the  Most  High. 

The  wayward  woman  faced  Jesus  longer  than 
these  representatives  of  the  law,  who  dismissed 
themselves  and  departed  from  His  presence.  The 
light  of  truth  breaks  over  us  as  we  read  that  single 
sentence,  "And  Jesus  was  left  alone,"  alone  in  the 
majesty  of  His  manhood,  alone  as  a  religious 
teacher,  alone  as  a  spiritual  leader,  alone,  pre- 
eminent, unapproachable,  supreme!  Then  comes 
the  completion  of  the  sentence,  "and  the  woman 
where  she  was  in  the  midst,"  just  where  she  had 
been  placed  by  her  accusers,  just  where  she  had 
been  left  by  them  when  they  withdrew.  She  had 
not  departed  with  the  rest,  silently  passing  out  with 
them  or  meekly  following  after  them.  From  them 
she  had  nothing  to  expect,  nothing  that  she  desired. 
Though  unrestrained,  she  is  yet  not  free,  and  in- 
stinctively awaits  her  liberation  by  the  One  Who 
must  have  seemed  to  her  greater  than  the  law.  The 
scribes  and  Pharisees  considered  themselves  the 
representatives  of  the  law  of  God,  but  had  oppor- 

165 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

tunity  to  discover  a  far  more  rational  representative, 
One  Who  saw  truth  and  saw  it  whole,  One  Who 
saw  the  negations  of  law  filled  out  in  the  affirma- 
tions of  truth,  One  Who  was  able  to  meet  sin  with 
the  gospel  of  a  real  redemption.  Here  was  One 
Who  could  appeal  to  conscience  with  peculiar 
power.  One  Who  could  drive  unrepentant  sinners 
out  of  His  presence,  One  Who  could  liberate  a  sin- 
ful soul  by  His  own  word  of  pardon.  He  meets 
sin  to  condemn  it,  but  above  all  to  overcome  it  and 
eliminate  it.  Sin  is  eradicable  according  to  His 
conception,  sin  as  personal  experience,  sin  as  made 
known  and  condemned  by  conscience,  sin  as  viola- 
tion of  the  law,  sin  as  the  set  of  the  soul,  sin  as 
opposition  to  God,  "sin  as  an  injury  to  God's  love, 
sin  as  a  grievous  wrong  to  our  own  humanity." 

Our  study  of  this  disputed  passage  admits  us  into 
the  presence  of  the  same  divine  Person  Who  appears 
throughout  the  Gospel  of  John  as  its  great  central 
figure.  This  passage  surely  fits  into  the  Gospel  as 
a  whole  and  has  a  certain  value  at  this  particular 
place.  It  gives  us  an  account  of  a  test  case  follow- 
ing the  public  assumption  of  authority  by  Jesus. 
That  authority  must  be  sustained  in  such  a  manner 
as  to  command  respect  and  to  prove  that  it  is  no 
mere  assumption.  This  incident  certainly  serves 
this  purpose  in  a  striking  manner  and  also  shows 
that  the  law  of  God  is  internal  and  not  external.  It 
fits  the  course  and  development  of  doctrine  which 
follows  as  it  accords  with  the  claim  of  Jesus  which 
precedes.  This  pubHc  claim  offered  to  His  enemies 
the  opportunity  for  this  public  test  in  the  temple. 

166 


A  Great  Sinner  and  a  Great  Savior 

Nor  are  we  disappointed  when  a  great  sinner  is 
brought  into  the  presence  of  the  great  Savior.  We 
rejoice  and  worship  as  we  behold  Him,  divinely 
wise  and  merciful  and  good,  the  essence  of  con- 
science to  evil  and  unrepentant  men,  and  the  essence 
of  divine  love  to  the  repentant  sinner. 

If  we  turn  our  attention  to  the  next  subject  of 
discussion  we  can  see  how  this  incident  bears  to- 
ward it  and  even  prepares  the  way  for  it.  Jesus 
there  claims  acceptance  as  though  His  authority 
was  sufficiently  known  and  certainly  established. 
He  teaches,  but  He  also  commands.  His  appeal  is 
to  man  as  moral.  He  speaks  in  the  name  of  the 
law,  not  as  external,  but  as  internal.  No  intel- 
lectual differences  can  set  aside  His  teaching  or 
abrogate  His  right  to  their  obedience.  His  doc- 
trine leads  straight  to  their  duty,  as  the  real  prin- 
ciple of  human  Hfe  and  the  only  guide  to  right 
conduct. 


167 


CHAPCER  XIII. 
Basis  of  Moral  Obligation. 

Jesus  emphasizes  His  personal  relation  to  God 
when  He  speaks  of  Him  as  "My  Father,"  and  His 
moral  relation  to  men  when  He  declares  that  He  is 
"the  light  of  the  world."  He  shows  in  the  course 
of  His  teaching  that  the  lower  relation  is  dependent 
on  the  higher,  a  fact  that  merits  our  careful  con- 
sideration. On  the  one  side  His  divine  Sonship 
reveals  Him  in  relation  to  the  Father,  and  on  the 
other  in  relation  to  men.  The  latter  relation  ap- 
pears in  three  different  forms:  First,  He  is  the 
light  of  the  world ;  second,  He  is  the  only  Savior 
from  sin ;  third,  He  is  the  one  spiritual  Leader  Who 
abides  in  the  house  forever,  Who  is  not  self-glorify- 
ing, and  Who  is  greater  than  Abraham. 

With  such  themes  of  instruction  Jesus  could  not 
avoid  crossing  the  Jewish  conceptions  of  religious 
life  and  precipitating  renewed  discussion.  To  the 
Jews,  Jesus  is  no  mere  theorizer,  no  mere  specu- 
lative philosopher  whose  ideas  have  no  practical 
interest  and  no  personal  bearing.  Like  the  light, 
Jesus  is  ever  present,-  active,  insistent,  and  able  to 
find  entrance  to  the  human  mind  through  the  in- 
telligence and  conscience,  the  emotions  and  will. 
Like  the  light.  He  may  be  shut  out  of  the  moral 
nature,  but,  like  the  light,  He  continues  to  shine, 
beating  against  every  barrier  and  bearing  in  upon 
every  soul. 

168 


Basis  of  Morial  Obligation 

He  is  the  light  of  the  world,  having  a  real  moral 
relation  to  every  soul,  a  well-defined  duty  to  every 
man.  On  other  lips  His  statement  would  appear 
to  be  a  glittering  generality.  It  comes  from  Him 
with  the  authority  of  truth,  having  both  a  general 
meaning  and  a  particular  application.  It  has  sig- 
nificance for  the  individual.  '*He  that  followeth 
Me  shall  not  walk  in  darkness,  but  shall  have  the 
light  of  life."  Life  shall  be  luminous  to  him,  and 
not  the  opposite.  He  shall  know  what  he  is  here  for 
and  what  is  his  proper  prospect.  As  a  follower  of 
Jesus,  a  man  steps  out  of  moral  darkness  and  walks 
in  the  light  that  properly  belongs  to  human  life,  the 
light  of  the  unbiased  intellect,  the  clear  conscience, 
the  earnest  will,  the  light  of  duty,  the  Hght  of  truth, 
the  light  of  God. 

The  Pharisees  challenge  this  statement  of  His  re- 
lation to  men  on  the  ground  that  His  testimony  re- 
fers to  Himself  and  therefore  cannot  be  true.  His 
answer  affirms  that  His  witness  in  reference  to 
Himself  is  true  because  He  knows  His  origin  and 
the  outcome  of  His  career.  Thej  know  neither,  and 
hence  they  cannot  hold  His  life  in  review  or  esti- 
mate its  real  value.  Their  judgment  is  human  only, 
and  human  in  the  most  limited  sense.  Jesus  judges 
no  man,  but  if  He  were  to  judge.  His  judgment 
would  be  true,  for  it  would  be  based  on  His  divine 
Sonship,  which  relates  Him  to  God,  the  Father. 
Thus  they  can  see  that  He  is  not  alone,  but  His  own 
testimony  is  confirmed  by  the  FatRer,  and  according 
to  their  law,  the  testimony  of  two  must  be  accepted. 
169 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

As  men  who  continue  to  think  in  terms  of  time 
and  space  and  physical  form,  it  was  only  natural  for 
these  Pharisees  to  ask,  "Where  is  Thy  Father?" 
They  have  His  language,  but  not  the  personal 
knowledge  of  Jesus  that  would  enable  them  to  know 
God  as  the  supreme  Personality.  They  have  missed 
the  entrance  way.  They  have  failed  to  see  in  Je- 
sus the  light  of  the  world,  and  likewise  fail  to  fol- 
low the  light  to  its  ultimate  source.  Jesus  speaks 
of  the  Father,  not  in  terms  of  time  and  place,  of 
providence  and  history,  but  simply  and  solely  with 
reference  to  Himself.  Personal  beings  are  known 
only  in  a  personal  way  and  through  personal  rela- 
tions and  not  as  isolated,  unrelated,  and  individual. 
The  knowing  of  Jesus  is,  therefore,  the  knowing  of 
the  Father,  in  fact  and  essence,  and  in  the  best  and 
only  way  men  can  know  Him.  If  the  statement  im- 
plies a  conformity  of  character  to  character,  a  rela- 
tion of  person  to  person,  an  intimacy  of  life  and 
being  that  transcends  human  experience,  it  does  not 
carry  us  beyond  the  divine  Sonship  assumed  by 
Jesus  and  described  by  the  Apostle  John. 

If  men  wish  to  deny  the  relation  of  Jesus  to  God, 
the  Father,  they  must  first  deny  His  relation  to  men 
as  the  light  of  the  world.  They  must  begin  by  deny- 
ing His  moral  relation  to  moral  beings,  since  this 
links  itself  with  the  other  practically  and  theoret- 
ically. If  they  admit  the  moral  relation  of  Jesus  to 
all  men,  then  let  them  in  consistency  admit  also  His 
relation  to  God,  the  Father,  as  the  real  basis  of  the 
subordinate  relation. 

170 


Basis  of  Moral  Obligation 

Truth  can  only  be  itself.  It  cannot  bear  down  its 
opponents  like  a  stronger  army  crushes  a  weaker 
one.  The  power  of  God  in  Jesus  is  not  His  for 
compulsion,  though  power  is  the  one  thing  the  un- 
spiritual  man  respects.  Men  know  power  as  force, 
but  less  as  authority,  and  still  less  as  divine  purpose 
and  will.  But  why,  with  Jesus  before  them,  can 
men  not  catch  one  little  glimpse  of  God?  As  we 
all  well  know,  though  the  light  of  the  world  is  shin- 
ing, it  still  takes  eyes  to  see. 

The  discussion  thus  far  produced  opposition,  but 
"no  man  took  Him,  because  His  hour  was  not  yet 
come."  His  teaching  touched  men,  if  only  to  raise 
their  resentment,  because  its  bearing  was  practical 
and  personal,  however  wide  its  reach  of  thought  and 
comprehensive  its  theory  of  being  and  life. 

Once  more  He  reveals  Himself  to  these  Jews  as 
He  declares  His  departure  from  the  world,  their  in- 
ability to  find  or  follow  Him,  and  the  fact  that  they 
shall  die  in  their  sins.  "Ye  shall  die  in  your  sins," 
a  statement  that  evidently  means,  ye  shall  continue 
to  reject  the  only  One  Who  can  save  you  or  any 
man  from  sin.  They  are  dependent  upon  Him  as 
their  only  Savior,  according  to  His  knowledge  of 
the  case.  The  Jews  find  no  explanation  of  a  de- 
parture that  would  place  Him  beyond  their  reach. 
His  explanation  might  set  their  minds  at  rest,  for 
He  traces  their  origin  and  His  own,  asserts  their 
supreme  relation  to  this  world,  declares  that  they 
shall  die  in  their  sins  unless  they  believe  in  Him  as 
their  Messiah  and  that  He  is  the  only  Savior  from 
sin.    Jesus  differs  from  these  Jews  as  to  the  origin 

171 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  outcome  of  li»fe,  as  to  knowledge  of  God,  and 
personal  relation  to  God.  They  stand  apart.  "Ye 
are  from  beneath ;  I  am  from  above ;  ye  are  of  this 
world;  I  am  not  of  this  world."  The  contrast  is 
complete.  He  proceeds  to  His  conclusion,  and  as- 
serts that  there  is  no  escape  from  sin  except  by 
faith  in  Him  as  God's  one  and  only  Mediator. 

The  arguments  of  Jesus  and  His  moral  courage 
in  the  presence  of  His  opponents  prove  Him  to  be 
no  ordianry  person,  even  in  their  estimation,  though 
they  steadfastly  refuse  to  accept  His  account  of 
Himself,  while  they  have  no  satisfactory  account  of 
their  own.  "Who  art  thou?"  is  their  belated  ques- 
tion, which  Jesus  answers  in  two  ways :  First,  by 
referring  them  to  His  previous  statements  concern- 
ing Himself ;  and,  second,  by  pointing  them  to  that 
future  event  in  His  life  in  which  they  are  principal 
actors  as  well  as  Himself.  "When  ye  have  lifted  up 
the  Son  of  man,  then  shall  ye  know  that  I  am  He." 
Even  they  shall  know  that  he  is  the  Messiah,  man's 
representative,  man's  substitute,  sent  by  the  Father, 
taught  by  Him  Whose  Presence  abides  with  Him 
and  to  Whom  He  renders  a  perfect  obedience.  No 
doubt  the  event  justified  this  prophetic  statement. 
These  very  men  must  have  known  these  very  facts 
as  well  as  they  could  know  them  without  personally 
accepting  them  as  true  and  thus  becoming  follow- 
ers of  the  Christ. 

The  conflict  of  controversy  dies  away  as  they 
draw  near  to  the  cross;  their  victory  and  His,  yet 
so  widely  different  as  to  be  directly  opposite.  The 
sweet  sense  of  His  relationship  to  God,  the  Father, 

172 


Basis  of  Moral  Obligation 

finds  expression  in  these  words,  "And  He  that  sent 
Me  is  with  Me;  He  hath  not  left  Me  alone;  for 
I  do  always  the  things  that  are  pleasing  to  Him." 
In  the  divine  calmness  of  His  inner  life  His  relation 
to  God  is  real  and  His  Sonship  perpetual.  Error 
and  opposition  cannot  discredit  or  destroy  it;  they 
are  not  necessary  to  its  existence ;  they  do  not  call  it 
into  self-consciousness.  Any  man  who  will  may 
look  in  upon  this  inner  Hfe  of  Christ,  for  it  has  man- 
ifested itself  to  all  men  in  service  and  self-sacrifice. 

Once  more  John  records  the  effect  of  Jesus' 
words,  "As  He  spake  these  things  many  believed  on 
Him,"  an  effect  that  is  at  once  apparent  to  Jesus. 
After  what  He  had  said  of  His  relation  to  God  and 
man  we  would  naturally  expect  Him  to  know  be- 
lievers and  address  them  as  such.  He  acts  accord- 
ing to  His  own  profession  and  never  disappoints 
any  reasonable  expectation.  He  confirms  His  con- 
fession by  His  conduct.  He  addresses  those  Jews 
who  have  just  beHeved  on  Him.  He  encourages 
them  to  abide  in  His  word  and  thus  to  be  truly  His 
disciples,  for  as  disciples  they  shall  know  the  truth, 
and  the  truth  shall  make  them  free.  The  believer 
has  prospect  and  promise  of  personal  development 
such  as  should  satisfy  his  common  sense  as  well  as 
his  religious  aspiration. 

Men  are  slow  to  recenter  and  reconstitute  them- 
selves. Their  old  conceptions  cling  to  them  and 
prevent  their  ready  adaptation  to  new  beliefs.  They 
cannot  at  once  master  the  full  significance  of  the 
new  position.  As  Abraham's  seed,  they  claim  that 
they  have  not  been  in  bondage  to  any  man.     They 

173 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

have  not  learned  to  distinguish,  however,  between 
the  spiritual  bondage  and  the  spiritual  freedom  of 
which  Jesus  speaks.  The  sinner,  whatever  his  an- 
cestry, is  the  bond  servant  of  sin,  and  hence  is  not 
and  cannot  be  free.  The  bond  servant  does  not 
abide  in  the  house,  like  the  Son,  Who  abides  in 
God's  kingdom,  as  it  appears  in  the  midst  of  the 
race  and  the  cosmic  order.  The  Son  has  a  perma- 
nent value  and  a  super-temporal  existence.  "If 
therefore  the  Son  shall  make  you  free,  ye  shall  be 
free  indeed."  This  is  spiritual  freedom,  the  freedom 
of  the  mind  and  heart,  the  freedom  of  the  mind  that 
has  rejected  error  and  welcomed  truth,  the  freedom 
of  the  heart  that  knows  God  as  revealed  in  Christ 
and  God  as  a  Spirit,  the  freedom  of  holy  life  and 
unhindered  action,  the  freedom  of  a  being  in  moral 
balance  and  religious  poise. 

Part  of  His  Jewish  hearers  have  believed,  while 
a  part  continue  their  contention.  Their  unspoken 
claim  that  they  are  Abraham's  seed  Jesus  admits, 
while  He  openly  reads  their  minds ;  "Ye  seek  to  kill 
I\Ie,''  assigning  as  their  reason  for  their  attitude  of 
mind  that  His  word  has  not  free  course  in  them. 
He  boldly  contrasts  His  relation  to  His  Father  and 
their  relation  to  their  father.  This  fundamental 
difference  causes  the  difference  in  mental  movement 
and  moral  quality,  which  has  become  so  apparent. 
Abraham's  seed  they  are,  but  not  Abraham's  chil- 
dren, for  if  they  were,  they  would  do  the  works  of 
Abraham.  He  never  sought  to  take  the  life  of  any 
one  who  told  him  the  truth,  as  Jesus  now  charges 
them  vvith  doing,  and  hence  avers,  "Ye  do  the  works 

174 


Basis  of  Moral  Obligation 

of  your  father,"  and  are  true  to  your  real  parent- 
age. 

In  sheer  self-defense  these  Jews  claim  God  as 
their  father,  while  Jesus  at  once  seeks  to  show  the 
inconsistency  of  that  claim.  If  the  claim  were  true, 
they  would  love  Him,  for  He  came  from  God,  not 
alone  of  His  own  will,  but  being  sent  by  God. 
Hence,  in  order  to  establish  their  claim  they  must 
destroy  His,  a  thing  they  were  willing  to  do  by  tak- 
ing His  life  contrary  to  God's  command.  Their 
claim  is  not  consistent  nor  does  it  relieve  the  con- 
tention. The  gap  widens.  They  cannot  understand 
Jesus  from  their  point  of  view,  nor  can  He  convey 
to  their  minds  His  teaching  because  of  the  funda- 
mental difference  of  character  and  origin.  "Ye  are 
of  your  father,  the  devil,  and  the  lusts  of  your 
father  it  is  your  will  to  do."  Your  will  governs 
your  knowing  and  is  governed  by  another  will  in 
which  evil  has  its  source  and  center.  Just  as  the 
devil  was  a  murderer  from  the  beginning  and  the 
father  of  lies,  so  these  Jews  possess  the  same  spirit 
and  thereby  determine  their  real  relationship.  Can 
they  find  a  flaw  in  this  argument,  a  misuse  of  facts, 
an  unjustified  assumption  or  a  false  assertion? 

His  personal  challenge,  "Which  of  you  convicteth 
Me  of  sin,"  calls  forth  no  charge  and  no  proof, 
though  flung  at  His  opponents  when  they  would 
gladly  have  accepted  it.  Sin  may  be  defined  as  the 
state  or  act  of  one  who  is  out  of  right  relation  to 
God ;  it  is  disobedience  to  the  law  of  God ;  it  is  the 
rejection  of  the  divine  will ;  it  is  the  exaltation  of 
the  human  will ;  it  is  the  self-centering  of  life.     Sin 

175 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

as  He  knows  it,  does  not  affect  Him,  and  so  Jesus 
safely  passes  the  inspection  of  His  enemies.  He  is 
willing  to  be  tried  by  the  same  standard  He  used 
in  testing  them.  Neither  He  nor  they,  as  moral 
beings,  could  be  content  with  any  lower  test.  If  He 
is  sinless,  they  should  accept  the  fact ;  if  He  speaks 
the  truth,  they  should  receive  it,  for  moral  beings 
cannot  be  arbitrary  and  yet  maintain  their  moral 
integrity. 

The  basis  for  communication  between  God  and 
man  is  stated  thus :  ''He  that  is  of  God  heareth  the 
words  of  God ;  for  this  cause  ye  hear  them  not,  be- 
cause ye  are  not  of  God."  The  man  who  is  related 
to  God  by  obedience  has  a  basis  for  understanding 
Him,  as  well  as  a  disposition  to  know  Him.  Char- 
acter determines  what  we  listen  to  with  interest  and 
what  we  accept.  We  exercise  a  certain  selection 
as  to  what  we  hear,  welcoming  what  we  want  to 
hear  and  rejecting  all  else,  thus  deciding  our  own 
development  and  destiny  by  our  own  choice.  "Nat- 
ural selection"  appears  like  a  mental  fiction  as  com- 
pared with  personal  selection,  which  is  always  very 
real,  if  not  always  very  rational. 

The  opposing  Jews  suggest  an  explanation  of 
Jesus  which  served  their  purpose,  if  it  did  not  sat- 
isfy their  minds.  He  takes  no  trouble  to  refute 
the  accusation  that  He  is  a  Samaritan,  and  not 
really  a  Jew  by  birth  or  belief,  for  it  needed  no  de- 
nial. He  denies  the  charge  that  He  has  a  demon 
and  acts  by  demonic  agency.  His  superhuman  wis- 
dom and  power  come  from  a  divine  source.  '*T 
honor  My  Father  and  ye  dishonor  Me,"  and  in  so 

176 


Basis  of  Moral  Obligation 

doing  ye  dishonor  the  Father.  Thus  Jesus  and  the 
Jews  stand  apart  more  and  more  definitely  as  tested 
by  this  supreme  relation  of  all  moral  beings. 

How  readily  the  great  Teacher  passes  from  dis- 
cussion and  self-defense  to  the  preaching  of  the 
truth.  With  the  easy  emphasis  of  perfect  knowl- 
edge, He  says  to  them,  'Tf  a  man  keep  My  word 
he  shall  never  see  death."  The  Jews  interrupt  Him 
with  their  old  charge  and  object  to  the  implied  su- 
periority of  Jesus  as  compared  with  Abraham  and 
the  prophets,  who  were  not  free  from  death.  Does 
Jesus  think  Himself  greater  than  Abraham  and  the 
prophets?  Who  does  He  think  He  is?  He  claims 
to  have  power  over  death,  that  God  is  His  Father, 
that  God  glorifies  Him,  that  He  knows  God,  that 
Abraham  rejoiced  to  see  His  day,  that  before  Abra- 
ham was  born  He  existed.  He  applies  to  Himself 
the  formula  of  Deity,  'T  am,"  in  the  affirmation  of 
His  self-existence  and  His  pre-existence  as  regards 
the  human  race.  This  statement  definitely  develops 
His  previously-announced  doctrine  that  God  is  His 
Father.  As  no  sin  could  be  found  in  His  conduct 
or  character,  so  no  flaw  appears  in  His  theory  of 
Himself  as  related  to  God,  for  He  ever  lives  in  that 
immediate,  perfect,  and  personal  relation  that  is 
best  expressed  in  the  term  Sonship. 

As  the  Son  of  God,  He  is  the  spiritual  liberator 
of  men,  freeing  them  from  the  burden  and  bondage 
of  sin,  from  error  and  its  mean  limitations,  from 
evil  in  its  manifold  forms,  from  death,  the  penalty 
of  sin.  But  spiritual  freedom  is  positive  as  well  as 
negative.     It  has  a  content  of  goodness  and  great- 

177 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

ness  unmeasured  and  unmeasurable.  The  spirit- 
ually free  continue  in  the  word  of  Jesus,  which 
opens  into  life  and  happiness  and  hope.  Truth  be- 
longs to  them,  the  system  of  knowledge  and  life 
and  being  that  centers  in  God.  The  Son  of  God  be- 
longs to  them  as  the  light  of  the  world,  the  only 
Savior  from  sin,  and  the  one  great  spiritual  Leader. 

If  Jesus  rightly  traces  His  origin  back  to  God, 
the  Father,  and  if  He  was  sent  by  the  Father,  then 
His  moral  relation  to  each  man  as  "the  light  of  the 
world"  is  a  perfectly  rational  conception.  If  He 
died  on  the  cross  as  the  Son  of  man  for  the  sins 
of  mankind,  and  if  His  obedience  to  God  kept  Him 
in  perfect  personal  association  with  God,  then  He 
may  reasonably  be  regarded  as  man's  only  Savior. 
If,  as  the  Son,  He  abides  in  the  house,  being  su- 
perior to  death  because  He  is  superior  to  evil  and 
error,  and  because  He  teaches  truth  and  makes  God 
known  to  men,  then  His  power  to  make  men  free 
indeed  is  but  a  logical  consequence.  Thus  the  re- 
lation of  Jesus  to  man  as  moral  and  to  God  as  His 
Father  completes  the  circle  of  His  moral  relations. 

The  conflict  here  described  leaves  certain  conclu- 
sions clearer  than  before.  Jesus  appears  as  a  man 
to  the  eyes  of  these  critical  Jews ;  a  sinless  man  in- 
deed, an  unwelcome  but  necessary  admission ;  an 
ideal  man,  who  impresses  men  with  the  sense  of 
His  own  reality  while  discovering  in  them  the  un- 
real. He  is  superhuman  in  wisdom  and  power. 
He  explains  Himself  as  One  Who  comes  from 
God  ;  the  promised  Messiah,  the  Savior  of  the  world, 
the  Son  of  God  in  a  special  sense,  to  Whom  God 
178 


Basis  of  Moral  Obligation 

answers  as  His  Father  in  this  same  sense.  As  Je- 
sus measures  His  own  mind  for  us  and  patiently 
tells  us  who  He  is,  first  as  related  to  men,  and  then 
as  related  to  God,  as  He  carefully  unfolds  to  unwill- 
ing minds  His  theory  of  being  and  well-being,  as 
He  describes  doubt  in  the  plainest  terms  and  en- 
courages faith  by  inviting  it  to  realize  spiritual  free- 
dom, we  catch  glimpses  of  greatness  which  we  re- 
fuse to  call  demonic,  but  resolutely  denominate  di- 
vine, which  fits  into  His  theory  of  Himself,  and 
which  wrecks  all  other  theories  on  the  rocks  of  in- 
consistency on  the  one  side  or  beaches  them  on  the 
other  on  the  shoals  of  inadequacy. 

His  Sonship,  which  expresses  His  relation  to  God, 
the  Father,  becomes  the  basis  of  His  moral  rela- 
tion to  men,  a  relation  that  finds  expression  in  His 
bold  assertion,  '1  am  the  light  of  the  world."  Thus 
founded.  His  moral  authority  is  absolute.  It  rests 
on  no  temporal  basis,  adopts  no  Hmited  principle  of 
development,  and  offers  no  system  such  as  men  are 
wont  to  construct.  He,  therefore,  assumes  the 
moral  obligation  of  His  hearers  to  know  Him  and 
to  believe  Him,  two  points  which  are  closely  pressed 
in  this  eighth  chapter  of  our  Gospel.  ''Ye  know 
neither  Me  nor  My  Father."  "If  I  say  truth,  why 
do  ye  not  believe  Me?"  His  power  to  enlighten 
men,  to  restore  them  and  to  perfect  them  morally 
so  that  they  are  free  from  the  bondage  of  evil, 
so  free  as  never  to  see  death  as  the  punishment  of 
unrepented  sin,  appeals  to  them  for  instant  recog- 
nition. 

179 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

As  the  light  of  the  world,  Jesus  reveals  moral 
obligation  wherever  there  is  a  moral  nature.  He 
views  man's  moral  nature  as  an  original  endowment 
that  implies  a  religious  relation.  He  plainly  shows 
that  moral  obligation  cannot  be  divorced  from  re- 
ligious Hfe  without  degrading  both.  As  both  moral 
and  religious,  Jesus  becomes  the  ethical  standard  of 
the  race. 

"Thou  seemest  human  and  divine, 
The  highest,  holiest  manhood.  Thou : 
Our  wills  are  ours,  we  know  not  how ; 
Our  wills  are  ours,  to  make  them  Thine." 
Thus  we  trace  our  moral  obligation  back  to  God, 
Who    creates    and    Who    sustains    moral    beings. 
Never  are  men  separate  and  independent,  but  rightly 
rest  back  upon  Him  Who  gave  them  being  and  Who 
attunes  free  moral  agents  to  the  harmonies  of  holy 
life.    No  standard  of  convenience  or  custom  suffices 
to  guide  and  govern  men.    They  require  a  law  that 
is  absolute  and  authoritative,  even  if  they  reject  it. 
The  basis  of  morality,  like  that  ot  icligion,  is  in  the 
heavens,  and  if  we  find  it  in  the  heart  of  man  we 
cannot  rest  content  until  we  have  discovered  it  in 
the  heart  of  God. 


180 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

The     Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus. 

The  text  taken  in  chapter  eight,  "I  am  the  light 
of  the  world,"  seems  to  be  the  text  of  the  ninth 
chapter  also,  in  which  Jesus  gives  sight  to  a  blind 
man  and  then  reveals  Himself  to  this  one,  at  least, 
as  the  Son  of  God.  No  doubt  the  light  shone  into 
other  minds,  but  apparently  produced  no  corres- 
ponding result,  at  least  in  the  case  of  the  Pharisees, 
who  pursued  their  chosen  course  unchanged,  if 
not  altogether  unhindered.  They  propose  to  break 
the  force  of  the  miracle  which  they  are  not  able  to 
discredit,  call  Jesus  a  Samaritan,  a  sinner,  a  man 
possessed  of  a  demon  or  controlling  spirit,  evil,  yet 
wise  and  powerful.  They  cast  out  of  the  synagogue 
the  man  who  had  been  blind  from  his  birth,  whose 
sight  Jesus  had  restored,  and  whom,  in  consequence, 
they  pronounce  a  sinner.  It  was  a  Sabbath  healing, 
and  shows  the  purpose  of  Jesus  not  to  respect  their 
external  interpretation  of  the  law  and  also  their 
purpose  to  continue  the  conflict  and  maintain  their 
old  idea  of  the  Sabbath  against  the  plain  teaching 
and  the  practical  claims  of  Jesus.  They  have  even 
agreed  that  no  one  can  remain  in  the  synagogue  if 
he  believes  in  Jesus  as  the  Christ  and  accepts  His 
teaching  as  true  and  authoritative.  They  propose 
to  meet  His  miraculous  power  with  their  power  of 
excommunication,  which  had,  as  one  of  its  imme- 
diate effects,  social  and  religious  ostracism. 

181 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Amid  this  moral  darkness,  Jesus  appears  as  the 
light  shining  clear  and  constant,  and  making  all 
about  Him  luminous  with  the  light  of  life,  A  divine 
intelligence  characterizes  Him  in  the  ninth  chapter, 
which  becomes  more  and  more  apparent  as  we  see 
Him  looking  into  the  minds  of  men  with  their  secret 
thoughts  open  before  Him,  their  moral  state  re- 
vealed to  Him,  and  even  their  mental  attitude  and 
personal  bias  clearly  within  His  view.  But  His 
radiant  Spirit  takes  no  unfair  advantage  of  men 
and  makes  no  unfriendly  use  of  His  superior  knowl- 
edge. On  the  other  hand,  He  reveals  His  own  mind 
and  heart  to  men,  throwing  open  to  them  His  benev- 
olent thought.  His  divine  nature,  and  His  holy  pur- 
pose to  enlighten  men  with  the  light  of  truth.  His 
intelligence  embraces  the  minds  of  men  and  the 
mind  of  God,  and  hence  He  brings  the  knowledge 
of  the  truth  by  imparting  the  knowledge  of  Himself. 

In  the  case  of  the  man  born  blind,  two  views  re- 
specting the  cause  are  entertained  as  possible.  In 
harmony  with  the  teaching  of  that  age,  the  dis- 
ciples consider  the  cause  as  human.  No  other  pos- 
sible cause  occurs  to  their  minds,  and  hence  they 
proceed  to  locate  the  responsibility,  placing  it  upon 
the  man  himself  or  upon  his  parents.  In  harmony 
with  the  teaching  of  our  age,  we  do  not  attribute 
sin  to  an  infant  in  the  sense  of  personal  guilt,  while 
we  do  in  the  sense  of  natural  taint  and  tendency. 
In  both  senses  we  charge  sin  to  parents,  and  hence 
for  us  the  question  has  practically  but  one  answer. 
Hereditary  influence  might,  indeed,  account  for  this 
blindness,  since  much  of  the  evil  in  the  world,  men- 
182 


The  Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus 

tal,  and  physical,  is  known  to  flow  directly  from  this 
prolific  source.  Jesus  does  not  adopt  the  view  ad- 
vanced by  the  disciples,  simply  because  He  has  a 
better  one  of  His  own.  This  man's  blindness  is  not 
the  result  of  sin  at  all,  his  own  or  that  of  his  parents. 
The  statement  of  Jesus  will  appear  less  dogmatic 
when  we  consider  two  things;  first,  that  the  facts 
in  the  case,  so  far  as  the  narrative  goes,  harmonize 
with  it;  and,  second,  that  such  a  statement  of  fact 
must  be  expected  on  the  part  of  One  Who  has  the 
divine  intelligence  of  Jesus.  The  case  is  before  Him 
on  both  sides,  the  human  and  the  divine.  He  knows 
all  there  is  to  know  about  it,  and  expresses  His 
view  accordingly.  He  discovers  a  totally  different 
cause.  God  in  heaven  does  some  things  which  men 
on  earth  wrongly  attribute  to  human  agency.  How 
wonderful  that  Jesus  knows !  How  reassuring  that 
He  never  places  sin  where  it  does  not  belong,  and 
never  classes  the  innocent  with  the  guilty! 

Jesus  declares  that  this  blind  man  is  one  of  God's 
examples,  just  as  we  know  Job  was  one  in  an 
earlier  age.  Not  for  his  sin  did  Job  suffer  bodily 
affliction  and  mental  anguish,  but  to  demonstrate  his 
integrity  as  against  the  insinuations  of  Satan,  to 
exalt  moral  character  as  a  thing  of  supreme  worth, 
and  to  vindicate  the  ways  of  God  with  men,  three 
great  ends  which  are,  or  ought  to  be,  inseparably 
associated.  The  mind  is  the  man,  the  spirit,  the 
self-conscious  being  who  presides  over  the  body 
and  over  whom  God  Himself  is  the  ever-watchful 
guardian.  This  blind  man  unconsciously  awaits 
the  coming  of  the  Qirist  that  he  may  receive  his 

183 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

sight,  natural  and  spiritual.  Without  confession  of 
sin,  and  without  requiring  faith  on  his  part,  his 
sight  is  bestowed  by  the  use  of  the  simplest  means 
and  by  the  co-operation  of  the  man  himself  in  ready 
obedience  to  Christ's  command. 

With  his  newly-acquired  power  of  vision,  the 
man  becomes  a  witness  to  the  fact  of  his  healing, 
and  in  the  stress  of  doubt  and  denial,  testifies  con- 
cerning the  character  of  his  healer.  He  sees  with 
his  mind  as  well  as  his  eyes.  The  intelligence  of 
Jesus  has  had  its  effect  upon  him,  at  least,  and  upon 
every  fair-minded  man  who  has  carefully  considered 
his  case.  The  Pharisees,  however,  are  still  true  to 
themselves,  and  while  they  cannot  deny  the  deliver- 
ance of  the  blind  man  from  his  natal  darkness,  they 
pass  by  the  benevolent  act  of  his  Healer  and  fix 
upon  the  fact  that  the  work  was  done  on  the  Sab- 
bath day.  They  come  again  to  their  old  contention 
and  their  old  conclusion.  ''This  man  is  not  from 
God  because  He  keepeth  not  the  sabbath  day,"  in 
the  same  way  they  are  accustomed  to  observe  it. 
They  set  an  example  which  they  expected  Him  to 
follow ;  they  interpreted  the  law  of  the  Sabbath, 
which  they  required  Him  to  make  the  law  of  His 
conduct ;  they  menaced  while  He  ministered ;  they 
used  the  Sabbath  to  oppose  Him,  while  He  used  it 
to  aid  others ;  they  based  their  authority  on  their 
observance  of  the  Sabbath,  while  He  rested  His 
upon  His  relation  to  God  the  Father ;  to  them  the 
Sabbath  meant  mastery,  while  to  Him  it  meant 
ministry.  If  their  idea  of  the  Sabbath  gives  place 
to  His,  then  His  whole  system  of  thought  and  life 

184 


The  Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus 

will  displace  theirs  and  the  divine  intelligence  of 
Jesus  will  become  the  illuminating  center  of  all 
minds.  Their  cherished  honors  will  fade  and  their 
inherited  power  disappear,  a  consummation  devoutly 
to  be  avoided,  whatever  may  be  the  effect  upon  their 
own  intelligence. 

The  Pharisees,  therefore,  resolutely  maintain 
their  theory  and  assert  that  Christ  is  not  from  God. 
Their  one  argument  is  that  He  does  not  observe 
the  Sabbath,  that  He  transgresses  the  law,  that  this 
spells  sin,  and  hence  their  conclusion.  From  the 
same  facts  others  reach  exactly  the  opposite  conclu- 
sion. How  can  a  man  that  is  a  sinner  do  such  signs  ? 
Divine  power  alone  could  have  produced  the  miracle, 
and  that  meant  divine  co-operation  with  Jesus.  No 
course  of  questioning  could  rob  the  healed  man  of 
his  personal  experience  or  reduce  his  estimate  of  his 
healer  below  the  rank  of  a  prophet,  nor  could  any 
course  of  questioning  change  the  minds  of  the  Jews 
even  when  the  testimony  of  the  parents  establishes 
the  fact  of  their  son's  healing  beyond  a  peradven- 
ture. 

They  are  consistently  working  out  their  theory 
and  enforcing  their  agreement  to  punish  any  one 
who  would  confess  Jesus  as  the  Christ.  In  defer- 
ence to  their  own  determination,  and  as  a  practical 
relief  from  their  own  mental  embarrassment,  they 
assert  that  Jesus  is  a  sinner,  while  the  blind  man 
states  the  doctrine  of  the  miracle  with  unexpected 
clearness  and  comprehension.  God  hears  not  sin- 
ners, but  only  men  who  do  His  will.  This  man's 
power  to  heal  plainly  demonstrates  that  He  is  from 

185 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

God.  He  is  not  self-centered  and  self-seeking,  not 
disobedient  to  God,  and  not  a  transgressor  of  the 
law.  He  must,  therefore,  be  what  He  represents 
Himself  to  be,  and  in  proving  His  character  He  has 
proved  His  claim. 

A  course  of  thinking,  with  its  corresponding 
course  of  conduct,  cannot  be  arrested  in  mid-air, 
but  must  be  pursued  to  its  ultimate  conclusion. 
These  Jews  cannot  rest  till  they  have  asserted  that 
the  healed  man  was  born  in  sin,  not  distinguishing 
between  sin  as  personal  or  sin  as  hereditary.  They 
reject  his  testimony  and  his  teaching,  and  class 
him  with  Jesus  on  the  supposition  that  the  two  are 
of  one  kind,  and  both  are  bad.  If  their  final  view 
was  not  the  same  as  their  first  one,  it  was  yet  forced 
upon  them  by  their  theory  and  their  purpose.  Their 
last  statement  of  the  case  is  the  exact  opposite  of 
the  statement  of  Jesus.  He  sees  no  sin  resting  upon 
this  man,  personal  or  hereditary,  as  the  cause  of  his 
blindness.  The  Jews  see  sin  in  the  healed  and  the 
Healer,  and  cast  the  man  out  of  the  synagogue  as 
his  merited  punishment.  They  can  at  least  be  con- 
sistent and  carry  out  their  theory  and  their  purpose 
as  far  as  these  will  go.  They  calmly  propose  to 
force  their  will  upon  other  wills  and  their  thought 
upon  other  minds.  Their  dogmatism  leads  to  vio- 
lence, and  the  two  together  take  the  place  of  intel- 
ligence and  reason,  and  the  psychology  of  evil  is 
thus  seen  to  resolve  itself  into  the  psychology  of  the 
perverted  will. 

Jesus  manifests  a  personal  interest  in  the  mental 
and  spiritual  welfare  of  the  man  upon  whom  He 

186 


The  Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus 

had  conferred  the  power  of  vision.  He  now  asks 
him  to  believe  on  the  Son  of  God,  assuring  him  that 
he  has  seen  Him,  and  that  ''He  it  is  that  speaketh 
with  thee,"  a  satisfactory  identification  and  suf- 
ficient description.  God  may  be  very  near  and  yet 
quite  unknown  to  us.  The  Son  of  God  is  the  su- 
preme object  of  faith  according  to  His  own  teach- 
ing. Obedience  to  Him  must,  therefore,  be  the 
beginning  of  wisdom,  even  when  it  leads  a  man  into 
open  conflict  with  other  men  who  are  apparently 
superiors  in  intelligence  and  authority.  Jesus  car- 
ries out  His  doctrine  to  its  logical  conclusion  and 
oflFers  Himself  as  the  object  of  faith  to  this  one 
person  who  has  been  convinced  of  His  character. 
Others  may  overhear,  but  this  man  hears ;  hears  in 
direct  address  and  in  terms  adapted  to  his  experi- 
ence, the  statement  of  the  object  of  Christ's  coming, 
namely,  to  relieve  moral  blindness  and  as  a  conse- 
quence to  confirm  it  when  the  light  of  divine  truth 
is  shut  out  of  the  soul  by  its  own  deliberate  action. 
He  came  to  show  the  diflference  between  the  sinner 
and  the  saint.  He  came  for  judgment,  to  make  a 
distinction  with  a  difference,  to  define  duty  in  con- 
trast with  disobedience,  to  illuminate  the  reason  and 
the  moral  judgment  in  order  to  moral  choice  and 
moral  development.  His  judgment  is  universal  in 
its  reach  and  application,  like  His  moral  relation  to 
men.  Hence  His  coming  includes  the  case  of  this 
blind  man,  physical,  mental,  and  spiritual,  and  lays 
the  foundation  of  a  personal  relationship  that  brings 
light  and  life  and  liberty  to  the  blind  man  and  to 
Jesus  the  opportunity  to  reveal  Himself  as  a  divine 

187 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

intelligence  that  is  the  light  of  the  world  and  like- 
wise the  light  of  a  single  soul. 

Evil  can  never  be  fully  satisfied  with  itself,  just 
as  it  cannot  rely  upon  its  own  knowledge  with  per- 
fect confidence.  Its  theory  of  knowledge,  like  its 
theory  of  life,  reveals  a  certain  imperfection,  a  cer- 
tain limitation,  an  essential  littleness.  Hence  the 
evil  man  wants  to  know  what  the  good  man  thinks 
of  him.  The  question  of  the  Pharisees,  ''Are  we 
also  blind?"  calls  out  the  solemn  declaration,  "If 
ye  were  blind  ye  would  have  no  sin :  but  now  ye  say. 
We  see :  your  sin  remaineth."  It  remains,  with  all 
it  signifies,  transgression  of  the  law  and  disobedi- 
ence to  God,  if  Jesus  is  indeed  His  chosen  repre- 
sentative ;  and  shows  that  other  mark,  selfishness, 
if  the  blind  man  had  any  right  to  His  service  or 
Jesus  any  claim  to  conscientious  consideration.  As 
the  Pharisees  virtually  claimed  that  they  were  free 
from  sin,  the  conclusion  Jesus  reaches  is  a  complete 
reversal  of  human  judgment. 

The  Jews  found  themselves  unable  to  prevent 
faith  in  Jesus  as  the  Son  of  God,  and,  what  was 
scarcely  less  objectionable,  the  public  profession  of 
that  faith.  Their  authority  over  the  conscience  and 
reason  and  will  fall  below  that  of  Jesus,  Who 
seemed  to  hold  in  His  hand  the  key  to  the  human 
heart.  His  victory  in  this  individual  case  foreshad- 
ows His  universal  victory.  What  is  true  for  one 
honest  mind  is  true  for  any  and  every  honest  mind. 
If  one  man  finds  God  in  Jesus  Christ  by  the  proc- 
esses of  experience  and  reason,  another  can  come 
to  the  same  conclusion  in  the  same  way.     If  sin  be 

188 


The  Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus 

the  starting  point,  the  mind  and  heart  must  feel 
burdened  and  dissatisfied  until  both  reach  the  per- 
sonal presence  of  the  sinless  One  and  rest  by  faith 
in  the  Son  of  God,  the  one  divine  Intelligence,  all- 
embracing  and  all-luminous  amid  the  moral  darkness 
of  a  sinful  world. 

Throughout  this  chapter,  the  intelligence  of  Jesus 
manifests  itself  as  divine  in  His  understanding  of 
men  and  relations,  in  His  compass  of  knowledge, 
and  in  His  adjustment  to  existing  conditions.  The 
intelligence  of  the  blind  man  had  its  compass  and 
its  capacity.  Within  his  own  personal  experience 
this  man  asserted  that  his  knowledge  was  final.  Of 
one  thing  he  was  sure :  he  knew  the  facts  given  in 
his  own  experience  with  perfect  knowledge  and 
with  perfect  confidence,  and  this  became  the  starting 
point  from  which  the  knowing  process  could  safely 
proceed.  He  is  profoundly  rational  and  hence  be- 
comes religious  in  the  Christian  sense.  The  intel- 
ligence of  the  neighbors  embraces  wonder  and  in- 
quiry, doubt  and  faith  sufficient  to  awaken  a  deep 
desire  to  see  the  great  Healer.  The  intelligence  of 
the  Jews  reveals  a  mixed  character  and  self-limited 
range.  They  know  that  God  spoke  to  Moses,  and 
this  becomes  their  nearest  approach  to  God.  They 
do  not  know  whence  Jesus  came,  in  spite  of  the 
fact  that  He  has  come  within  their  personal  observa- 
tion. They  know  who  Jesus  claims  to  be,  but  they 
do  not  know  how  to  admit  His  claim  or  how  suc- 
cessfully to  dispute  or  destroy  it.  They  know  that 
Jesus  is  a  sinner,  but  they  do  not  know  how  a  sin- 
ner can  do  God's  work.    A  contradiction  must  come 

189 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

in  somewhere,  and  they  prefer  to  place  it  here.  Jesus 
is  a  sinner  who  does  God's  work,  but  as  a  sinner  He 
cannot  be  the  Christ.  The  man  born  blind  taunts 
them  with  their  confessed  ignorance,  ''Ye  know 
not,"  right  in  the  field  where  you  ought  to  know. 
Here  your  intelligence  failed,  just  where  it  ought  to 
shine  clearest,  just  where  reason  ought  to  reign  and 
reach  its  climax.  You  reject  Jesus  and  would  re- 
ject Him  on  any  terms.  You  are  not  rational  in 
your  rejection  of  Jesus  or  right  in  your  opposition 
to  one  who  does  God's  work.  These  Jewish  teach- 
ers cling  to  their  theory  and  refuse  to  be  taught  by 
one  whom  they  regard  as  a  moral  inferior.  Their 
minds  are  narrowed  down  to  less  than  the  normal 
human  limits,  remain  in  unstable  equilibrium,  and 
present  a  perfect  contrast  to  the  unfettered  and  un- 
limited intelligence  of  Jesus. 

As  the  rays  of  the  sun  fall  lightly  upon  us,  so  the 
light  of  the  world  centered  in  Jesus  Christ  shines 
with  its  manifold  powers  and  works  its  wonders 
everywhere.  No  one  can  be  hid  from  the  search- 
ing rays  of  this  higher  light  which  ministers  to  the 
higher  life  or  relentlessly  reveals  the  genesis  of 
degeneracy  and  the  marks  of  false  development. 
The  divine  intelligence  of  Jesus  fills  a  place  in  the 
world  of  the  moral  and  spiritual  just  as  certainly 
and  as  necessarily  as  the  sun  fills  its  place  in  the 
world  of  the  material.  It  is  central  with  reference 
to  truth  and  duty  and  moral  development.  If  it 
appears  to  be  predominantly  critical  in  the  ninth 
chapter  of  John's  Gospel,  in  the  tenth  it  is  chiefly 
constructive;  if  it  comes  into  comparison  with  the 

190 


The  Divine  Intelligence  of  Jesus 

intelligence  of  men  in  the  one,  in  the  other  it  shines 
out  with  characteristic  freedom ;  if  in  the  one  it 
comes  into  conflict  with  the  Jewish  system  of 
thought  and  life,  in  the  other  it  proceeds  to  unfold 
according  to  its  own  nature  in  the  realm  of  life  and 
being,  which  is  pre-eminently  its  own. 


191 


CHAPTER  XV. 
The  New  Moral  Order. 

The  shepherd  and  his  flock  are  employed  as  the 
symbols  of  thought  by  which  Jesus  sets  forth  His 
relation  to  His  followers  on  the  one  hand,  and  their 
relation  to  Him  on  the  other.  The  known  side  of 
the  analogy,  so  familiar  to  Jewish  minds,  fosters 
freedom  of  mental  action,  not  even  suggesting  their 
preconceived  ideas  of  a  theocratic  kingdom  with 
temporal  forms  and  earthly  power.  The  kingdom 
which  Jesus  represents  is  not  the  one  they  have 
anticipated  or  fondly  pictured  to  themselves,  not 
even  the  one  that  then  existed,  centering  in  Jeru- 
salem and  professing  to  receive  its  law  from  Sinai, 
but  a  new  moral  order,  having  a  new  leadership,  a 
new  life,  and  a  new  unity.  It  centers  in  a  person, 
the  Person  of  Christ,  Who  is  the  representative  of 
both  God  and  man,  and  Who  gives  His  life  of  love 
and  service  as  the  law  of  His  people.  He  describes 
His  people  as  His  sheep  and  not  His  subjects,  for 
He  is  their  leader  and  liberator.  He  speaks  to  them 
in  terms  of  life  and  its  relations,  for  no  earthly  king- 
dom can  conform  to  this  heavenly  life,  which  must 
be  constituted  according  to  its  own  nature,  and 
which  leads  on  to  the  formation  of  a  society  of  its 
own  kind. 

If  the  life  of  Jesus  is  heavenly  and  divine  in  its 
character,  it  cannot  fit  into  the  molds  fashioned  by 

192 


The  New  Moral  Order 

religious  leaders  who  are  predominantly  human  and 
earthly.  It  can  adapt  itself  to  human  conditions, 
but  it  cannot  lose  its  moral  and  spiritual  quality. 
When  it  enters  into  the  activities  and  relations  of 
human  life,  it  must  maintain  its  character,  and  hence 
it  must  institute  a  new  order,  a  moral  order,  a 
spiritual  order,  an  order  in  which  a  being  like  Jesus 
can  exercise  a  real  leadership,  where  all  life  is  like 
His  own,  and  where  unity  is  rightly  realized.  A 
kingdom  divided  against  itself  cannot  stand,  but 
the  kingdom  Jesus  establishes  is  to  be  an  everlast- 
ing kingdom  because  of  its  internal  constitution,  its 
essential  unity,  its  quality  of  life,  and  its  enduring 
leadership. 

The  development  of  His  doctrine  has  proceeded 
steadily  till  the  outlines  of  the  new  moral  order 
definitely  appear.  The  conflict  with  the  old  order, 
which  is  yet  in  existence  and  which  is  represented 
by  these  Jews,  must  continue,  but  many  men  are 
ready  for  progressive  ideas  and  constructive  doc- 
trine. They  are  anxiously  looking  for  something 
better.  They  really  desire  a  new  leadership  and  a 
new  life.  The  old  can  no  longer  satisfy  the  demands 
of  their  awakened  minds  and  earnest  hearts.  It  is 
yet  before  them,  but  not  within  them.  It  has  served 
its  age  and  visibly  wanes  as  it  comes  in  comparison 
with  the  clearer  light  and  larger  leadership  of  Jesus. 
Just  the  thing  the  Jewish  leaders  dreaded  is  coming 
to  pass  before  their  eyes  and  in  spite  of  their  per- 
petual protest.  In  mind  and  heart  many  men  are 
devoted  to  the  new  Leader,  Who  leads  men  like  a 
shepherd  leads  his  flock,  Who  opens  the  way  of  life 

193 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

like  a  door  that  swings  freely  on  its  hinges,  Who 
binds  men  back  to  God  the  Father  by  the  single 
strand  of  His  own  personal  friendship. 

We  should  expect  to  find  the  manifestation  of  the 
Messiah  or  the  revelation  of  God  to  man,  as  we 
prefer  to  think  of  it,  embodied  in  a  history,  a  liter- 
ature, and  a  philosophy  of  its  own.  We  find  all  we 
expected  and  more,  and  in  dealing  with  these  three 
disciplines  we  place  the  emphasis  differently  at  dif- 
ferent times,  but  it  should  be  evident  to  all  thinking 
men,  that,  in  recent  years,  the  emphasis  on  the  third 
has  been  less  than  that  accorded  the  first  or  second. 
The  tenth  chapter  of  John  unfolds  the  philosophy 
of  the  religious  relation  as  taught  by  Jesus  rather 
than  the  history  of  that  relation.  Disciples  must 
know  its  nature  in  order  to  appreciate  its  worth  and 
in  order  to  respond  to  its  regnant  claims. 

The  analogy  here  employed  sets  forth  the  true 
character  of  Jesus  as  the  one  shepherd  of  His  flock, 
as  their  spiritual  leader,  as  their  personal  protector, 
Whose  perfect  knowledge  individualizes  His  sheep 
and  Whose  voice  they  know  in  distinction  from  all 
others.  His  flock  know  not  the  voice  of  strangers, 
so  different  in  spirit  and  temper  and  purpose,  so 
unlike  the  gentle,  yet  commanding,  voice  of  this 
One  Who  is  not  a  thief,  not  a  robber,  and  not  a 
stranger  to  His  people.  His  purpose  is  not  theft, 
not  the  taking  of  life,  not  the  destruction  of  char- 
acter, but  the  bestowment  of  life  with  that  spiritual 
amplitude  which  the  soul  of  man  instinctively  re- 
quires. His  purpose  issues  in  a  personal  devotion 
that  offers  its  own  life  for  the  benefit  of  His  flock. 
194 


The  New  Moral  Order 

It  has  an  exterior  as  well  as  an  interior  value.  His 
philosophy  finds  its  way  into  history  and  literature 
as  a  secondary  and  subordinate  fact,  simply  because 
it  finds  its  way  into  the  life  of  men. 

Jesus  is  the  good  shepherd  in  complete  contrast 
to  the  hireling  who  has  no  sense  of  ownership,  but 
who  has  a  keen  perception  of  danger,  which  prompts 
him  to  seek  his  own  safety  as  the  first  principle  that 
governs  his  conduct.  He  loses  sight  of  his  sheep 
when  he  catches  sight  of  the  approaching  wolf,  and 
then  he  sees  no  one  except  himself.  UnHke  the 
hirehng,  Jesus  sacrifices  His  own  life  for  His  flock 
and  knows  them  individually  and  personally 
even  as  they  know  Him  in  like  manner,  an 
intimacy  of  knowledge  which  corresponds  with 
the  divine  knowing  described  in  these  words, 
''even  as  the  Father  knoweth  Me  and  I  know  the 
Father."  His  mind  moves  upward  to  the  very 
center  of  being  and  then  downward  again  to  His 
sheep  and  to  their  unity  in  one  flock  with  one  shep- 
herd. His  devotion  of  Himself  to  the  flock  has  the 
Father's  approval,  while  it  in  no  wise  robs  Him  of 
His  life  and  leadership,  which  He  assures  us  rests 
upon  a  specific  appointment,  'This  commandment 
received  I  from  IMy  Father."  His  being  must  be 
stated  in  terms  of  His  relation  to  His  followers,  else 
their  being  cannot  be  expressed  in  terms  of  their  re- 
lation to  Him.  This  illustrative  form  of  teaching 
may  be  regarded  as  literature  and  studied  as  though 
that  were  its  chief  end,  but  in  a  far  more  important 
sense  it  is  philosophy,  the  philosophy  of  the  relation 
of  Jesus  to  men  of  responsive  minds. 

195 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

But  Jesus  must  explain  His  own  teaching  to  His 
own  disciples.  He  is  the  door,  the  way  of  entrance, 
the  way  forward  in  the  total  development  of  the 
individual,  and  hence  He  becomes  an  essential  fac- 
tor in  individual  life.  He  assumes  a  central  place, 
just  such  a  place  as  would  be  appropriate  for  God 
and  for  Him  alone.  He  is  the  good  shepherd,  whose 
protecting  care  over  His  flock  engages  His  whole 
being,  and  ought,  therefore,  to  call  forth  a  corres- 
ponding interest  and  devotion.  A  door  does  not 
exist  for  itself  alone,  but  also  for  those  who  go  in 
and  out.  A  shepherd  does  not  live  apart,  but  with 
and  for  his  flock.  As  long  as  men  need  spiritual 
leadership,  He  offers  it  to  them,  and  as  long  as  they 
desire  to  advance  in  hfe.  He  opens  to  them  the  op- 
portunity. He  is  the  legitimate  leader  Who  comes 
to  men  and  invites,  while  the  illegitimate  leader  gets 
admission  to  men's  minds  and  hearts  in  any  way  he 
can,  in  order  that  he  may  ultimately  compel  obedi- 
ence. 

Men  find  in  Jesus  Christ  an  answering  reality. 
He  is  more  than  men  who  assume  to  be  shepherds 
when  they  are  not,  who  are  not  divinely  appointed, 
and  who  have  no  legitimate  claim  to  human  sup- 
port. He  is  always  more  than  men  think  He  is; 
more  as  a  leader,  more  as  a  life-giver,  more  as 
a  unifier  of  His  followers.  His  relation  to  men 
cannot  be  exhausted  in  thought  or  personal  ex- 
perience as  long  as  men  respond  to  Him  in  thought 
and  life.  Matter  responds  to  matter  according 
to  the  law  of  gravity,  which  is  an  invisible  force 
that  binds  the  material  universe  together  in  a  won- 

196 


The  New  Moral  Order 

derfiil  yet  necessary  unity.  The  great  body  mysteri- 
ously attracts  the  little  body  as  the  little  one  attracts 
the  great  one,  and  each  is  the  measure  of  its  own 
power  to  attract  and  to  be  attracted.  In  itself, 
gravity  shows  no  marks  of  personal  agency,  while 
it  answers  the  ends  of  intelligence  by  laying  the 
solid  foundation  for  the  superstructure  of  creation. 
Above  the  realm  of  matter,  in  the  realm  of  mind  and 
spirit,  gravity  disappears  from  our  view  and  person- 
ality reveals  itself  in  its  essential  selfhood  and  its 
power  to  attract  and  repel. 

Men  are  not  left  without  the  higher  connections 
of  life ;  these  are  all  supplied.  Jesus  answers  to  the 
demands  of  the  human  mind  and  heart,  giving  to 
both  their  completion  and  their  sense  of  reality. 
He  it  is  Who  completes  the  arch  of  being.  He  it 
is  Who  constitutes  perfect  manhood  and  enduring 
society  by  His  divine  leadership,  His  gift  of  eternal 
life,  and  His  principle  of  spiritual  unity.  Thus  He 
establishes  the  moral  order  in  which  men  can  live 
and  move  and  have  their  being  with  a  satisfying 
sense  of  its  present  worth,  its  future  prospect,  and 
its  perpetual  promise.  As  men  learn  to  know  the 
Christ,  they  must  also  learn  to  know  themselves,  and 
both  sides  of  this  arch  of  being  must  meet  in  solid 
self-support.  As  He  is  the  door  they  must  find  en- 
trance through  Him ;  as  He  is  the  good  shepherd, 
they  must  follow  as  He  leads  and  share  His  pro- 
tection ;  as  He  unifies  all  moral  beings  in  one  moral 
company  and  companionship  men  must  respond  to 
His  harmonizing  influence  till  they  are  accepted  as 

197 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

worthy  members  of  the  one  flock  with  its  one  shep- 
herd. 

The  universal,  the  divine,  element  in  the  teaching 
of  Jesus  cannot  be  concealed  by  doubt  or  cancelled 
by  criticism.  As  the  light  of  the  world  Jesus  claims 
a  moral  relation  to  every  man,  which  every  man 
ought  honorably  to  own ;  as  the  door  of  entrance 
into  the  new  moral  order.  He  is  one  and  only ;  as  the 
good  shepherd,  He  is  without  a  real  rival  or  a  known 
compeer.  He  proposes  to  unify  all  moral  beings  in 
one  harmonious  society  on  the  principles  of  His  own 
teaching  and  His  own  life.  He  carries  out  His 
conception  to  its  completion  with  no  merely  tem- 
poral view  of  Himself  and  His  followers.  If  His 
relation  to  His  followers  goes  to  the  center  of  His 
own  being  and  theirs,  if  He  is  really  their  shepherd 
and  they  are  really  His  sheep,  then  this  relation  ex- 
tends from  the  very  center  of  His  personality  to  the 
very  circumference  of  His  authority.  The  moral 
order  which  He  establishes  must  be  universal.  All 
worthy  personality  must  be  related  to  Him  in  the 
unity  of  obedience,  the  association  of  life,  and  the 
blessings  of  benevolent  leadership. 

The  sacrifice  of  Himself  for  His  disciples  calls 
forth  the  Father's  love  for  Jesus,  drawing  it  from 
the  deepest  fountain  of  life  and  being.  He  gives 
His  life  as  a  real  gift  and  takes  it  again  as  a  real 
possession,  and  this  free  act  for  humanity  wins  the 
divine  approval,  for  it  lies  in  the  course  of  divine 
thought  and  purpose.  It  is  not  incidental  in  His  life 
and  His  relation  to  His  followers,  a  relation  that  is 
real  and  sacrificial  and  personal  on  both  sides.  No 
198 


The  New  Moral  Order 

one  robs  Him  of  His  life.  Of  His  own  free  will  He 
offers  it,  having  the  power  to  lay  it  down  and  the 
power  to  take  it  again.  Nor  is  this  simply  the 
ordinary  experience  of  human  life,  but  a  God-given 
privilege,  expressed  in  the  specific  command  of  the 
Father.  Life  is  too  sacred  to  relinquish  without 
the  divine  command.  His  voluntary,  sacrificial 
death  proclaims  Him  a  Son  and  a  Savior,  but  not 
a  suicide  who  seeks  to  escape  from  his  enemies  by 
self-destruction,  not  even  a  martyr  who  dies  in  de- 
votion to  some  great  principle.  He  perfects  His 
relation  to  humanity  by  carrying  it  beyond  death, 
the  consequence  and  the  penalty  of  sin. 

If  Jesus  has  worked  out  His  thought  to  its  log- 
ical conclusions,  so  also  have  the  people  worked  out 
theirs  according  to  their  ability.  A  division  of 
sentiment  appears  and  these  differing  opinions  work 
themselves  out  to  their  corresponding  extremes. 
Many  declare  that  He  has  a  demon  and  is  mad  and 
is  therefore  unworthy  of  a  patient  hearing,  while 
others  assert  that  His-  words  are  not  those  of  a  de- 
mon and  His  deeds  are  certainly  not  attributable 
to  such  an  agent.  When  He  is  challenged  to  tell 
them  plainly,  boldly,  if  He  is  the  Christ,  He  answers 
by  recalling  His  former  statements  on  the  subject, 
by  citing  His  works  as  His  witnesses,  and  by  affirm- 
ing that  they  do  not  believe  because  they  are  not  of 
His  sheep.  A  difference  of  being  and  a  perversion 
of  relation  causes  a  difference  of  opinion  respecting 
Himself. 

Once  more  He  yields  to  the  necessity  of  stating 
His  relation  to  His  followers,  seven  separate  counts 

199 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

being  enumerated:  His  sheep  hear  His  voice,  He 
knows  them,  they  follow  Him,  He  gives  them  eter- 
nal life,  they  shall  never  perish,  '*no  one  shall  snatch 
them  out  of  His  hand,"  ''no  one  is  able  to  snatch 
them  out  of  the  Father's  hand."  His  statement  of 
His  relation  to  men  on  one  side  calls  forth  on  the 
other  His  statement  of  His  relation  to  God.  He  as- 
serts His  unity  with  the  Father,  a  fact  implied  in 
what  He  had  previously  said  in  reference  to  Him- 
self, but  here  it  is  stated  in  a  form  that  cannot  be 
misunderstood.  The  Jews  at  once  accept  it  as  an 
assertion  of  His  deity.  Jesus  does  not  question  the 
correctness  of  their  inference,  but  maintains  His 
character  by  affirming  that  His  good  works  were 
from  the  Father,  His  Jewish  hearers  regarding  the 
miraculous  as  an  almost  incontrovertible  argument. 
If  they  cannot  properly  appreciate  His  personality, 
they  can  at  least  estimate  aright  the  works  of  Jesus 
which  lie  in  the  realm  of  physical  fact  and  benef- 
icent purpose. 

The  Jews  seek  to  separate  between  the  good 
works  of  Jesus  and  the  Person  who  performed  them. 
They  desire  to  accept  the  good  works  while  they 
are  determined  to  stone  the  One  Who  performed 
them,  as  though  being  and  doing  were  separate  and 
contradictory  in  the  Person  of  Christ.  They  charge 
Plim  with  blasphemy,  and  for  this  they  would  stone 
Him,  "because  that  Thou,  being  a  man,  makest  Thy- 
self God."  Jesus  stays  their  hands  by  referring  to 
their  law,  in  which  men  are  called  gods  because  to 
them  the  word  of  God  had  come.  Their  wrath  is 
arrested  for  the  moment  as  "the  Scripture  cannot 
200 


The  New  Moral  Order 

be  broken"  by  them.  But  Jesus  has  not  withdrawn 
His  claim  or  reduced  it  to  the  terms  of  the  Scrip- 
ture He  has  just  quoted.  If  men  are  so  exalted  by 
the  word  of  God  coming  to  them,  how  *'say  ye  of 
Him  whom  the  Father  sanctified  and  sent  into  the 
world,  Thou  blasphemest;  because  I  said  I  am  the 
Son  of  God?"  His  is  a  higher  claim  than  the  law 
contemplates,  while  it  is  the  same  in  content,  for 
Jesus  comes  as  an  expression  of  the  mind  of  God. 
His  statement,  I  am  the  Son  of  God,  is  not  blas- 
phemy, but  simply  a  statement  of  fact  supported  by 
evidence  they  are  able  to  weigh.  ''If  I  do  not  the 
works  of  My  Father,  beheve  Me  not."  His  unity 
with  the  Father  is  reflected  in  His  works.  He  is  no 
mere  actor  on  the  stage  of  life.  What  He  appears 
to  be,  that  He  is  and  never  less.  There  is  no  real 
line  of  cleavage  between  the  works  of  Jesus  and 
His  Person,  as  they  supposed,  and  yet  He  proposes 
that  they  should  believe  His  works  without  believ- 
ing Him,  as  easier  ground  for  men  whose  personal 
prejudice  has  blinded  their  eyes  to  His  personal 
worth.  He  asks  them  to  believe  His  works  as  prod- 
ucts of  divine  power,  even  if  they  cannot  at  once 
believe  Him  as  a  divine  person,  for  this  one  step  in 
the  right  direction  will  logically  lead  them  to  a  true 
knowledge  of  the  Father's  relation  to  Jesus  and 
then  also  His  relation  to  the  Father. 

Thus  Jesus  clearly  defines  His  relation  to  God, 
the  Father,  on  one  side,  in  order,  on  the  other,  to 
make  clear  His  relation  to  His  followers  and  their 
relation  to  Him.  To  them  He  is  a  divine  leader 
who  brings  eternal  life  and  spiritual  unity.  Ihus 
201 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Jesus  presents  Himself,  and  thus  also  should  He 
be  received  by  His  disciples.  In  the  language  of 
Professor  Stalker,  "They  accept  Him  as  He  offers 
Himself  to  them  and  act  accordingly.'^,  However 
widely  opinions  may  differ  respecting  Jesus,  the 
believer  sees  Him  always  the  same  wherever  a  be- 
liever is  found.  His  relation  to  His  followers  roots 
deep  in  His  own  life  and  being  and  also  in  the  life 
and  being  of  God,  the  Father.  His  works  like  His 
words  point  upward  to  their  divine  source  and  at- 
test the  presence  of  a  divine  Person.  Only  thus 
could  His  relation  to  men  be  a  means  of  restoring 
order  in  a  disordered  universe.  Only  thus  could 
unity  be  established  among  intelligent,  moral  beings. 
Jesus  offers  no  superficial  means,  no  specious  meth- 
ods of  securing  this  result,  but  such  as  are  funda- 
mental and  always  adequate.  His  agency  records  its 
action  in  the  mind  and  heart,  the  conduct  and  char- 
acter of  the  believer,  whose  spiritual  oneness  with 
the  Father,  through  the  Son,  is  distinctly  traced  in 
the  life  eternal,  which  he  has  received  from  its 
primal  source. 

As  His  enemies  failed  to  arrest  Him,  so  also  they 
failed  to  arrest  the  progress  of  His  teaching  con- 
cerning the  new  moral  order  with  its  three  elements 
— divine  leadership  present  and  all-embracing,  eter- 
nal life  as  the  believer's  present  inheritance,  and 
spiritual  unity,  that  note  of  harmony  which  rings 
true  in  the  kingdom  of  God  on  earth  and  in  heaven. 


202 


CHAPTER  XVI. 
The  Deity  of  Christ. 

The  humanity  of  Jesus  was  accepted  without 
question  by  the  people  who  had  the  opportunity  to 
see  and  know  Him.  His  humanity,  Hke  that  of  any 
man,  was  self-evidencing  and  required  no  other 
proof.  Men  knew  Him  as  one  who  possessed  the 
same  nature  as  themselves.  As  a  man  He  easily 
made  room  for  Himself,  and  readily  commanded  a 
rightful  recognition.  If,  indeed,  He  is  a  most  re- 
markable man.  He  is  in  no  sense  abnormal,  and  in 
the  compass  of  the  eleventh  chapter  of  John  He 
speaks  and  acts  in  a  manner  that  leaves  nothing  to 
be  added  in  order  to  complete  the  perfect  picture  of 
His  humanity. 

The  Deity  of  Christ,  however,  is  a  fact  of  a  higher 
order  and  therefore  required  repeated  manifesta- 
tions and  conclusive  proofs  before  it  could  be  ac- 
cepted with  perfect  assurance.  Here  is  a  fact  so 
new,  so  great,  so  extraordinary  that  men  must  be 
given  ample  opportunity  to  know  it  by  the  processes 
of  observation  and  reflection.  Deity  is  the  fact  to 
be  determined  and  then  fitted  into  our  thought  and 
life.  His  deity  in  His  humanity,  the  two  harmo- 
niously associated  and  even  organically  united.  His 
deity  is  deliberately  unveiled  before  our  eyes  and 
makes  its  appeal  to  our  minds  and  hearts,  challeng- 
ing our  consideration  and  acceptance  not  merely  as 
a  matter  of  statement  or  argument,  but  especially 
203 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

as  a  self-revelation  which  carries  with  it  self-evi- 
dencing power.  Men  must  be  taught  not  only  by 
words  of  instruction,  and  convinced  not  only  by 
logical  argument,  but  also  by  practical  demonstra- 
tion. Why  shall  not  the  deity  of  Christ  express 
itself  as  well  as  His  humanity?  Why  shall  it  not 
manifest  itself  by  means  of  its  power  and  wisdom 
and  love,  and  so  declare  the  presence  of  a  divine 
Person?  If  this  be  possible,  may  we  not  consider 
it  morally  necessary?  Thus  men  are  called  upon  to 
know  His  deity  as  well  as  His  humanity.  They 
should,  therefore,  face  this  great  fact  and  assure 
themselves  that  our  Lord  acts  in  His  own  right 
when  He  exercises  an  authority  and  exerts  a  power 
that  belong  to  God  alone. 

Thus  we  are  brought  face  to  face  with  the  prob- 
lem presented  in  this  chapter  and  are  given  our 
opportunity  to  know  God  as  He  is  revealed  in  Jesus 
Christ.  If  our  minds  can  act  with  the  same  freedom 
exhibited  in  the  text,  they  will  surely  grasp  with 
some  measure  of  appreciation  and  some  degree  ot 
confidence  the  one  great  fact  recorded  there. 

From  His  enforced  retirement,  Jesus  returned  to 
Bethany  in  answer  to  the  appeal  of  Martha  and 
Mary,  and  at  the  behest  of  duty,  coming  back  to 
the  field  of  His  former  activity  as  recorded  in  the 
tenth  chapter.  In  the  temple  at  Jerusalem  He  had 
asserted  His  unity  with  the  Father,  and  now  in 
Bethany,  less  than  two  miles  distant  and  with  many 
of  the  same  auditors.  He  proceeds  to  manifest  His 
deity  in  the  most  convincing  way.  His  word  must 
be  sustained  by  His  deed  of  demonstration.     The 

204 


The  Deity  of  Christ 

believer  must  see  the  glory  of  God  and  the  Son  of 
God  glorified,  for  doubt  must  be  driven  from  the 
mind  and  heart  and  those  who  believe  not  must  be 
left  without  excuse. 

The  practical  importance  of  the  deity  of  Christ 
demands  this  divine  demonstration  which  Jesus  is 
so  glad  to  give.  He  desires  to  be  all  He  is  even  in 
the  midst  of  human  life  and  in  the  circle  of  human 
relations.  Human  life  evidently  requires  his  di- 
vine presence,  that  part  which  lies  beyond  the  tomb 
as  well  as  that  part  which  lies  within  the  bounds 
of  space  and  time.  He  is  the  master  of  it  all,  and 
the  proof  of  His  mastery  becomes  the  proof  of  His 
deity.  The  power  to  recall  a  human  being  who  had 
passed  the  portal  of  death,  was  accepted  by  friend 
and  foe  as  unquestionably  divine,  and  while  we  reach 
this  climax  of  truth  in  the  eleventh  chapter,  we  find 
also  a  corresponding  climax  of  error. 

The  public  assertion  of  the  deity  of  Jesus  in  chap- 
ter ten  leads  logically  to  the  public  proof  which  we 
find  in  the  eleventh  chapter.  The  evidence  there 
offered  should  be  sufficient  to  convince  any  candid 
mind  that  Jesus  exercised  a  power  that  belongs  to 
God  alone.  He  prays,  but  it  is  ''because  of  the 
multitude  that  standeth  around  I  said  it,  that  they 
may  believe  that  Thou  didst  send  Me."  He  is  Him- 
self the  agent  of  resurrection.  He  exercises  the 
power  of  recall  over  the  human  spirit;  He  acts  in 
His  own  right  and  on  His  own  responsibility,  'T  am 
the  resurrection  and  the  life,''  yet,  as  we  should  ex  • 
pect.  He  acts  in  harmony  with  the  Father  and  as 
His  representative.     The  return  of  Lazarus  at  His 

205 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

command  reveals  His  complete  control  of  the  de- 
parted spirit  as  well  as  the  dead  and  decaying  body, 
and  points  unmistakably  to  the  deity  of  Christ  as 
its  only  explanation. 

The  return  of  Lazarus  to  this  world  and  this  life, 
at  the  call  of  Jesus,  commonly  called  the  resurrection 
of  Lazarus,  transports  us  in  thought  to  a  hill-top  of 
vision  from  which  we  are  able  to  survey  human  life 
as  Jesus  sees  it.  There  are  none  who  claim  pre- 
cedence here,  none  to  divide  His  glory  or  dispute 
His  power,  for  they  are  the  glory  and  power  of  God. 
The  human  will  is  helpless  when  human  hearts  are 
hushed  by  bereavement  and  subdued  by  sorrow. 
Tears  of  grief  distill  like  dew  and  flow  from  human 
eyes,  while  Jesus  weeps  in  human  sympathy  and 
divine  compassion.  He  weeps  in  the  valley  of  the 
shadow  of  death,  where  human  thought  looks  low 
and  human  life  seems  little,  where  the  ties  that  bind 
spirit  to  spirit  are  vacated,  if  not  dissolved  by  death. 
Behold  Him  there,  for  there  thou  shalt  presently  be, 
oh,  man.  See  Him  now  as  thou  shalt  surely  see  Him 
then,  the  sympathetic,  the  divine  Christ.  Hear  Him 
now  as  you  may  hear  Him  then,  for  He  it  is  Who 
commands  the  dead  to  come  forth  from  the  tomb, 
once  more  to  enter  the  relations  of  life  in  the  little 
home  in  Bethany,  and  above  all,  to  be  henceforth  a 
living  witness  of  the  deity  of  our  Lord. 

There  is  a  progressive  revelation  of  Christ's 
glory  which  adapts  it  to  the  comprehension  of  men. 
It  is  manifested  in  life  and  character,  in  word  and 
deed.  It  is  expressed  in  personality,  and  then,  lest 
man  should  lose  the  meaning,  it  is  formulated  in 
206 


The  Deity  of  Christ 

language.  It  comes  to  men  through  every  avenue 
of  approach.  The  presence  and  power  of  Jesus 
embrace  the  reahii  occupied  by  the  human  spirit 
here  and  hereafter,  his  entire  being  and  his  entire 
Hfe,  as  the  appropriate  field  of  its  manifestation. 
Nor  does  the  glory  of  God  become  dim  and  distant 
as  it  sweeps  the  wide  range  of  man's  present  exis- 
tence or  pierces  the  dark  defile  of  death. 

Jesus  declares  that  there  is  a  divine  purpose  in  the 
sickness  and  death  of  Lazarus.  They  are  permitted 
''for  the  glory  of  God,  that  the  Son  of  God  may  be 
glorified  thereby."  Sickness  precedes  death  in  the 
order  of  nature  and  the  death  is  real  but  not  final. 
It  is  subject  to  review.  The  thought  of  Jesus  covers 
the  whole  case,  and  the  outcome  fully  justifies  His 
first  statement.  Men  do,  indeed,  behold  the  glory 
of  God  when  they  see  God  supreme  over  life  and 
death  as  both  come  within  their  knowledge  and  as 
both  extend  beyond  their  comprehension.  God  is 
never  tasked  by  His  acts  or  limited  in  His  greatness 
and  goodness.  His  glory  is  His  own  and  challenges 
human  recognition  wherever  and  whenever  its  radi- 
ant beams  reach  the  eyes  of  the  heart.  The  Son  of 
God  is  glorified  by  the  exercise  of  His  divine  agency 
in  behalf  of  Lazarus,  who  becomes  an  individual 
example  of  His  universal  interest  in  men  and  by 
His  personal  presence  among  men,  even  while  He 
transcends  them  in  character  and  being. 

Can  we  question  the  divine  purpose  as  stated  by 

Jesus  or  the  divine  fulfilment  as  recorded  by  John? 

Is  either  unworthy  of  God  ?    Are  we  surprised  that 

Jesus  reads  events  before  they  transpire  just  as  we 

207 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

might  read  them  after  they  occur  ?  Only  one  differ- 
ence need  be  noted,  namely,  He  has  a  clearer  and 
completer  view  before  than  we  have  after  the  event. 
He  can  tell  better  what  will  be  than  we  can  tell  what 
has  been.  He  holds  in  his  hand  the  key  to  the  whole 
situation,  the  whole  realm  of  thought  and  being  and 
life,  and  hence  reads  events  in  terms  of  divine  think- 
ing and  intention  as  well  as  human  aim  and  aspira- 
tion. His  must  therefore  be  the  true  reading  which 
admits  of  no  emendation  or  revision. 

When  Jesus  announces  His  purpose  to  return  to 
Judea  to  awake  Lazarus  out  of  sleep,  a  suggestive 
way  of  describing  His  task,  His  disciples  offer  a 
weighty  reason  why  He  and  they  should  not  go  even 
on  a  mission  so  important  and  so  urgent.  Relentless 
opposition  and  even  personal  violence  evidently 
awaited  them  there.  They  are  themselves  in  danger 
of  death  at  the  hands  of  the  Jews,  and  the  death  of 
Lazarus,  moreover,  has  already  been  announced, 
certainly  a  dark  prospect  before  the  disciples.  But 
Jesus  sees  more  than  they  see:  the  resurrection  of 
Lazarus,  the  demonstration  of  His  own  deity,  the 
confirmation  of  their  faith.  From  His  viewpoint  the 
duty  far  outweighs  the  danger.  The  privilege  of 
restoring  life  outweighs  the  peril  of  losing  life. 
"Lazarus  is  dead.  And  I  am  glad  for  your  sakes 
that  I  was  not  there  to  the  intent  that  ye  may  be- 
lieve :  nevertheless  let  us  go  unto  him."  His  action 
will  be  fully  justified  if  only  their  faith  answers  to 
His  revelation  of  Himself. 

Jesus  calls  forth  Martha's  faith  in  Him  and  shows 
her    its    nullifying    limitations.      She   believed    He 

208 


The  Deity  of  Christ 

could  have  prevented  the  death  of  her  brother  if 
only  He  had  been  present  before  his  death  occurred . 
But  now  it  seems  too  late  to  expect  Him  to  do  any- 
thing for  her  relief  except  to  ofifer  His  tender  sym- 
pathy. His  absence  was  fatal,  for  according  to  her 
present  thought,  He  was  absent  in  mind  as  well  as 
body.  His  real  presence  and  divine  power  rendered 
no  aid  in  this  crisis  of  her  experience.  Her  second 
article  of  faith  declares  her  confidence  in  Jesus  in  a 
rudimentary  form  that  admitted  of  immediate  de- 
velopment. "Even  now  I  know  that  whatsoever 
Thou  shalt  ask  of  God,  God  will  give  Thee."  She 
already  believes  that  His  power  in  prayer  is  unlim- 
ited, that  God  answers  every  prayer  He  ofifers,  that 
His  mind  moves  in  perfect  harmony  with  the  divine 
Mind. 

But  when  Jesus  says  to  her,  "Thy  brother  shall 
rise  again,"  she  answers  out  of  her  present  knowl- 
edge and  faith  and  sorrow,  "Yes,  at  the  resurrection 
at  the  last  day."  He  has  found  the  limit  of  her 
faith  in  Him.  She  has  stopped  short  of  His  deity, 
while  He  is  patiently  leading  her  on  to  this  supreme 
conclusion  and  this  final  faith.  Her  suggestive 
words  respecting  His  unlimited  power  in  prayer 
reveals  her  faith  in  Him  as  One  Who  knows  the 
way  of  approach  to  God  and  enjoys  the  divine  fa- 
vor. But  the  two  are  evidently  not  thinking  the 
same  thoughts  about  the  same  things.  She  thinks 
of  death  as  having  come  in  His  absence  and  without 
His  consent,  while  He  thinks  of  it  as  a  divine  per- 
mission and  appointment ;  she  thinks  of  it  as  an  irre- 
versible f^ct,  He  as  a  conquered  enemy  subject  to 
209 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

His  power ;  she  thinks  of  a  future  resurrection,  He 
of  a  present  one;  she  of  his  potential  power  with 
God,  He  of  His  divine  power  reheving  her  present 
need  :  she  of  His  intimate  personal  relation  to  God, 
He  of  His  essential  deity. 

He,  therefore,  ofifers  Himself  to  her  thought  and 
defines  Himself  as  the  real  answer  to  her  present 
necessity.  "I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life."  He 
eliminates  the  future  as  well  as  the  present  from  His 
statement  and  shows  that  the  living  and  the  dead 
are  alike  related  to  Himself.  I  am  the  resurrection 
of  the  dead  and  the  life  of  the  living.  Death  cannot 
take  advantage  of  His  absence,  lessen  His  life,  or 
limit  His  Person.  As  God  had  spoken  to  Moses,  so 
He  says  to  her,  "I  am."  He  is  here  now  and  able 
now  to  do  all  He  wills  to  do  in  her  behalf,  and  the 
immediate  resurrection  of  her  brother  comes  within 
the  scope  of  His  divine  power  and  His  divine  pleas- 
ure. Resurrection  has  become  a  part  of  His  system 
of  instruction,  a  part  of  His  unanswerable  argument 
in  His  own  behalf,  a  part  of  His  self-revelation.  If, 
in  this  instance,  it  appears  individual  in  its  benefits 
and  local  in  its  interest,  it,  nevertheless,  proves  to 
be  general  in  its  value  and  application,  being  fol- 
lowed by  a  statement  of  universal  as  well  as  in- 
dividual significance,  "He  that  believeth  though  he 
die  yet  shall  he  live  and  he  that  liveth  and  believeth 
shall  never  die." 

Jesus  asks  Martha  to  accept  His  statement  with 
His  interpretation  of  its  meaning — a  rather  appro- 
priate basis  for  meditation  on  the  part  of  the  modern 
thinker.     If  He  really  has  a  right  to  think  as  He 

210 


The  Deity  of  Christ 

does,  and  express  His  mind  in  words  and  deeds,  He 
must  be  His  own  best  interpreter.  His  language 
must  reflect  the  depth  of  meaning  contained  in  His 
life.  Martha  must  rewrite  her  confession  of  faith 
in  presence  of  her  bereavement  and  in  presence  ot 
her  Lord,  an  oft  repeated  experience  among  men. 
In  its  revised  form,  her  faith  appreciates  and  ap- 
propriates its  object  better  than  ever  before.  She 
said  unto  Him,  ''Yea,  Lord :  I  have  believed  that 
Thou  art  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  even  He  that 
cometh  into  the  world."  She  confesses  her  relation 
to  Him  as  her  Lord,  His  Messiahship,  His  divine 
Sonship,  His  world-mission.  Only  here  does  Jesus 
rest  His  case,  for  only  in  this  faith  can  the  mind  of 
man  really  rest  or  really  receive  the  returning  one 
whose  death  had  been  permitted  for  the  glory  of 
God,  that  the  Son  of  God  might  be  glorified  thereby. 
When  Mary  presents  herself  before  Jesus,  she 
addresses  Him  in  the  exact  language  used  by  her 
sister  Martha.  They  are  sisters  in  their  affection 
for  their  brother  and  in  their  estimate  of  Jesus  as  a 
family  friend ;  but  according  to  the  narrative,  Mary 
did  not  require  the  same  instruction  Martha  had  re- 
ceived in  order  to  welcome  Jesus  as  the  resurrection 
and  the  life  and  in  order  to  welcome  her  returning 
brother  when  he  came  forth  at  Christ's  command. 
The  Jews  must  have  noted  the  confidence  of  the 
sisters  in  Him  and  the  free  expression  of  their  sor- 
row to  Him.  Such  sorrow  finds  expression  only 
before  a  deeper  nature.  They  noted  the  tears  of 
Jesus  and  took  them  to  be  the  visible  evidences  of 
His    wonderful    love    for    Lazarus.      They    reason 

211 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

well,  but  some  ask  a  question  that  expresses  a  timid 
faith  or  a  lingering  doubt.  "Could  not  this  man, 
who  opened  the  eyes  of  him  that  was  blind,  have 
caused  that  this  man  should  not  die?"  Their  atti- 
tude of  mind  resembles  that  of  the  sisters  in  one 
respect  at  least — they  can  see  no  ground  for  ex- 
pecting help  after  death  has  done  its  work.  Time 
has  sealed  the  verdict  and  time  cannot  be  turned 
back  in  its  course.  Events  are  locked  in  historic 
connections  and  causal  relations,  and  the  human 
mind  must  bow  in  rational  recognition  of  both. 
Men  have  no  higher  tests  of  the  true  and  the  pos- 
sible than  their  system  of  thought  and  things  afifords. 
Human  reason  and  human  faith  find  their  limits, 
beyond  which  they  are  unable  to  proceed  without 
divine  aid.  New  facts  are  needed  by  the  Jews  and 
the  sisters  for  the  expansion  of  thought  and  the 
conception  of  Christ.  Jesus  presents  these  facts 
in  due  time  with  His  own  interpretation  of  them. 
He  commands  them  to  open  the  tomb,  to  which 
Martha  offers  objection  because  she  thinks  of  the 
decaying  body  resting  there  and  because  she  has 
not  been  able,  as  yet,  to  look  for  resurrection  as 
the  end  of  her  grief,  the  confirmation  of  her  faith, 
and  the  revelation  of  her  Lord.  Only  when  Jesus 
repeats  His  significant  question,  "Said  I  not  unto 
thee,  that,  if  thou  believest,  thou  shouldest  see  the 
glory  of  God?"  does  she  really  face  the  great  fact 
and  permit  the  stone  to  be  taken  away.  She  has 
not  persuaded  Jesus  to  raise  Lazarus  from  the  dead, 
but  Jesu§  has  persuaded  her  to  accept  Hi§  divine 

212 


The  Deity  of  Christ 

ministry,  receive  her  returning  brother,  and  see  the 
glory  of  God. 

The  prayer  of  Jesus,  a  prayer  of  thanksgiving  to 
the  Father,  a  prayer  confessing  dependence  upon 
the  Father,  appeals  for  no  special  aid  in  so  great  a 
work,  but  rather  lends  its  aid  to  the  multitude  to 
enable  them  to  believe.  Like  the  prayer  of  Elijah 
on  Carmel,  it  testifies  of  the  source  of  His  power, 
and  especially  of  the  supreme  relation  of  His  life. 
He  addresses  Lazarus  by  name  and  commands  him 
to  come  forth.  ''He  that  was  dead  came  forth, 
bound  hand  and  foot  with  grave  clothes ;  and  his 
face  was  bound  about  with  a  napkin."  They  are 
directed,  who  stand  near,  to  do  what  remains  to  be 
done,  'ioose  him  and  let  him  go."  Jesus  is  the 
resurrection  and  the  life,  body,  soul,  and  spirit 
unitedly  answering  in  testimony  to  this  truth.  He 
speaks  to  God  in  prayer,  to  Lazarus  in  the  grave,  to 
living  men  around  Him,  as  though  all  ranks  of  be- 
ing and  realms  of  life  were  within  the  compass  of 
His  voice !  All  answer  Him  in  harmonious  re- 
sponse. The  grave  gives  up  its  dead  and  the  people 
accept  his  return.  God  becomes  a  witness  for  Him 
Whom  He  has  sent,  that  men  may  believe  in  Him. 
All  answer  Him,  and  shall  I  not  hear  His  voice  and 
respond  in  obedience?  Shall  I  not  know  His  deity 
and  then  reverently  worship  Him,  as  one  who  has 
seen  His  glory? 

We  are  glad  to  know  the  immediate  efifects  of 
this  mighty  miracle  upon  the  minds  of  men.  Some 
of  the  Jews  believe,  and  some  report  to  His  enemies 
what  they  had  witnessed.    The  Pharisees  take  ac-^ 

213 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

count  of  His  superior  power  over  the  people,  and 
resolve  to  destroy  it  by  means  of  His  death.  It  is 
the  last  and  only  remedy.  They  will  not  surrender 
their  power  or  even  subordinate  it  to  one  that  is 
evidently  greater.  A  prophecy  of  the  high  priest 
encourages  them  in  this  course  of  action.  Organ- 
ized evil  seeks  the  sanctions  of  religion.  The  Phar- 
isees propose  to  answer  Him  in  terms  of  His  own 
act  and  teaching.  He  called  Lazarus  from  the 
tomb;  they  will  lay  Him  in  the  tomb;  He  declared 
Himself  the  resurrection  and  the  life;  they  will 
prove  that  He  is  neither ;  He  disputed  their  suprem- 
acy ;  they  will  reaffirm  and  re-establish  it.  They 
will  decree  His  death  and  thus  arrest  His  influence 
and  destroy  His  power  over  the  people.  When  he 
lies  cold  and  lifeless  in  the  grave,  this  demonstra- 
tion of  His  deity  will  lose  its  power,  and  they  will 
be  free  to  pursue  their  own  path  unhindered.  Thus 
they  read  the  event  according  to  their  own  ardent 
anticipation,  but  regretfully  discover  after  it  oc- 
curred that  it  failed  to  conform  to  their  reading. 
The  death  and  resurrection  of  Jesus  had  exactly  the 
opposite  effect,  being  the  final  confirmation  of  the 
deity  of  Christ,  a  confirmation  which  was  especially 
given  to  them  for  their  enlightenment. 

The  power  of  Jesus  is  divine  because  His  Person 
is  divine.  Power  is,  with  Him,  no  mere  temporary 
possession,  but  the  attribute  of  His  being  and  the 
act  of  His  will.  His  power  is  divine  because  He  is 
divine.  In  like  manner  He  is  the  resurrection  and 
the  life  in  His  own  nature  and  as  the  agent  of  both. 
Jesus  says,  "I  am,"  as  God  says  it  in  the  earlier  dis- 

214 


The  Deity  of  Christ 

pensation.  to  express  divine  quality  and  character 
as  well  as  self-existence,  organic  being,  and  personal 
life.  How  futile,  then,  to  take  His  life  in  hope  of 
thus  conquering  His  divine  power!  His  doctrine 
is  organically  related  to  His  Person.  And  so  resur- 
rection appears  to  be  a  state  of  personality  rather 
than  an  event  in  human  life.  Time  and  place  can- 
not condition  it  because  it  belongs  to  the  realm  of 
the  spirit  and  must  be  read  in  terms  of  the  higher 
Hfe. 

If  we  think  of  resurrection  as  referring  to  man's 
existence  after  death  in  the  full  possession  of  all 
his   powers,   we  find   ourselves    surveying   another 
part  of  man's  life  over  which  Christ  rules  with  di- 
vine authority.     Girist  is  not  limited  by  death  or 
confined  to  the  present  life.     He  enters  time  from 
eternity  and  returns  again  to  the  timeless  state  of 
being,  and  hence  He  ofifers  Himself  to  Christian 
faith  as  the  resurrection  and  the  life.    It  is  the  doc- 
trine of  the  divine  power,  but  more  especially  of  the 
divine   Person  Who   links   us   with   God  and   with 
our  own  best  future  development.     Deity  has  spo- 
ken, let  humanity  hear.     If  resurrection  opens  the 
gates  for  the  King  of  glory  to  come  in,  shall  we  not 
behold  with  open  eyes  and  claim  a  close  view  of  this 
supreme   Person?     Shall   we   not   rise  to   the   full 
height  of  our  own  personality,  and  thus  be  better 
able  to  know  Him  and  the  power  of  His  resurrec- 
tion?    Says  a  German  writer,  "Personality  in  dis- 
tinction from  individuality,  is  that  which  has  taken 
up  into  itself  what  is   of   universal  validity" — the 
very  elements  which  Christianity  so   freely  offers 

215 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  so  carefully  cultivates.  Resurrection  as  a  racial 
possibility  and  promise  appears  in  Christ,  the  new 
head  of  the  race.  For  Him  death  is  only  possible 
as  He  Himself  accepts  it.  He  is  not  externally  con- 
ditioned. His  life  is  within,  and  when  He  comes 
back  to  man  from  the  grave  and  from  eternity,  He 
brings  light  and  immortality  to  light.  If  we  accept 
the  definition  of  eternal  life  given  us  by  Rev.  Henry 
S.  Nash,  "a  kind  of  life  wherein  Hfe  completely  con- 
trols the  machinery  of  life,"  or  that  of  Rev.  D.  W. 
Faunce,  ''that  interior  principle,  the  motions  of 
which  rule  the  exterior  act,"  we  are  sure  we  have 
traced  it  to  its  source  when  we  discover  it  in  Jesus 
Christ.  He  is  the  life  as  He  is  the  resurrection, 
each  separately  and  both  together  as  essential  ele- 
ments of  His  divine  endowment. 


216 


CHAPTER  XVII. 
National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel. 

The  expression  of  the  deity  of  our  Lord  in  a  man- 
ner suited  to  the  apprehension  of  His  hearers  pre- 
pared their  minds  for  their  part  in  the  great  event 
which  comes  next  in  order  in  the  course  of  John's 
laconic  narrative.  The  period  of  retirement  which 
intervenes,  no  doubt,  serves  to  further  the  same 
end.  Men  were  given  time  to  meditate  without  op- 
portunity for  expression  until  His  return  to  Beth- 
any, where  Mary  anointed  His  feet,  and  also  to 
Jerusalem,  where  He  was  publicly  honored  as  the 
Messiah,  where  Greeks  desire  to  see  Him,  and 
where  Jesus  reasserts  His  claims  in  brief  forms  of 
statement,  but  v/ith  all  their  essential  content  of 
thought. 

The  opposition  of  the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees 
had  already  assumed  a  fixed  form  and  become  a 
settled  purpose  which  they  cared  not  to  conceal, 
though  its  one  object  was  to  take  His  life.  After 
the  prophecy  of  the  high  priest  had  been  uttered,  a 
prophecy  which  was  easily  fitted  into  their  thought 
and  theory  concerning  Jesus,  after  they  had  what 
seemed  to  be  the  sanction  of  religion,  their  aim  was 
fixed,  if  not  their  course  of  action.  ''So  from  that 
day  forth  they  took  counsel  that  they  might  put  Him 
to  death,"  and,  as  a  consequence  Jesus  could  not 
safely  walk  among  the  people  as  before.  But  the 
approach  of  the  Passover  would,  in  their  estima- 

217 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

tion,  surely  call  Him  out  of  His  seclusion.  "What 
think  ye?  That  He  will  not  come  to  the  feast?" 
Active  and  alert,  the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees 
propose  to  comp,^l  men  to  report  His  whereabouts 
''that  they  might  take  Him."  They  are  ready  to 
apprehend  Him  on  sight  as  they  now  fully  believe. 
Not  as  previously  in  the  midst  of  the  feast,  but 
six  days  before,  Jesus  came  to  Bethany  where 
Lazarus  was.  In  the  privacy  of  the  home  He  is 
honored  by  these  grateful  friends  who  can  never 
forget  His  wonderful  intervention  and  His  wonder- 
ful manifestation  of  the  glory  of  God.  Who  but 
Mary,  the  one  who  sat  at  His  feet ;  who  but  Martha, 
the  one  who  learned  from  Him  the  lesson  of  faith ; 
who  but  Lazarus,  the  living  witness  of  His  deity, 
could  at  this  time  entertain  Him  at  supper  and 
anoint  His  feet  in  worshipful  devotion?  No  visible 
halo  encircles  His  head,  but  about  Him  gathers  a 
group  of  devout  hearts  that  rejoice  in  His  presence 
and  await  His  words  of  wisdom.  His  invisible  king- 
dom is  already  coming,  and  His  righteous  reign 
makes  righteous  souls  rejoice.  He  is  the  shepherd 
of  the  individual  soul  as  well  as  the  head  of  the 
human  race.  He  is  God's  chosen  one,  the  Messiah, 
the  deliverer  of  His  people.  He  is  the  harmony  of 
heart  and  home  and  heaven,  the  harmony  that  is 
individual,  social,  universal,  and  that  is  here  real- 
ized in  this  little  family  circle  with  only  one  note  of 
discord,  which  rudely  reminds  us  that  we  are  yet 
on  earth  with  its  care  and  contention.  *'Why  was 
not  this  ointment  sold  for  three  hundred  shillings 
and  given  to  the  poor?" 

218 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

Men  may  measure  devotion  to  Christ  and  even 
Christ  Himself  with  the  wholly  human  standard  of 
money;  they  may  profess  to  know  an  object  more 
worthy  of  human  interest  and  aid ;  they  may  exalt 
one  class  of  men  above  Christ,  Who  came  to  save 
all  classes ;  but  their  view  of  Qirist  can  never 
dampen  or  displace  the  devotion  of  the  devout  heart. 
The  believer  stands  next  to  Christ,  and  His  divine 
Personality  means  more  to  him  than  a  specious  argu- 
ment inspired  by  worldly  considerations.  Men  may 
offer  their  reason  for  doing  what  they  desire  to  do 
when  some  holy  soul  has  been  actuated  by  some 
higher  motive;  they  may  not  be  candid  enough  to 
denounce  noble  acts  and  motives,  while  they  are 
willing  to  offset  them  by  presenting  other  motives 
and  acts  as  equal  or  superior ;  they  may  assert  their 
personal  interest  in  the  poor  or  some  other  class  of 
society  while  they  are  only  hiding  the  motive  and 
the  personality  of  Judas.  John  explains  that  the 
reason  assigned  is  not  the  real  reason  that  moved 
Judas,  but  his  love  of  money,  his  character  as  a 
thief  and  his  habit  of  appropriating  public  funds. 
Eternity  cannot  show  more  clearly  the  insincerity 
of  Judas  or  the  candor  and  consecration  of  Mary. 

Art  places  about  the  head  of  the  divine  Christ  a 
halo  of  light,  while  history  places  around  Him  a 
group  of  earnest,  sincere  spirits.  The  subjects  of 
the  King  are  also  His  associates  !  His  laws  are  writ- 
ten in  human  hearts  and  His  spirit  breathes  in  liv- 
ing men !  Invisible  is  His  kingdom,  yet  real,  as  real 
as  the  spirit  of  man  and  as  real  as  the  Christ  of  God. 
Jesus  defends  the  ministry  of  Mary  as  prophetic  of 
219 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

His  death  and  as  an  appropriate  tribute  of  devotion 
to  One  Who  will  not  always  remain  with  them.  The 
quiet  home  at  Bethany  affords  a  field  for  Christian 
fellowship  and  Christian  co-operation  within  the 
confines  of  the  kingdom  of  God  as  Christ  has  es- 
tablished it  on  the  earth. 

The  common  people  of  the  Jews  learn  where  He 
is  and  seek  to  see  Him  once  more,  and  also  Lazarus, 
"whom  He  had  raised  from  the  dead.  But  the  chief 
priests  took  counsel  that  they  might  put  Lazarus 
also  to  death."  Beside  the  kingdom  of  Christ  is  the 
kingdom  of  His  opposers,  a  real  kingdom,  organ- 
ized, aggressive,  and  ready  at  any  cost  to  maintain 
its  own  sovereignty  and  perpetuate  its  own  exist- 
ence. It  assumes  to  be  the  kingdom  of  God,  but 
God  has  not  two  kingdoms,  but  only  one,  and  the 
assumption  instead  of  the  realization  of  God's  king- 
dom is  the  contradiction  of  the  truth  and  the  re- 
jection of  the  spirit  of  that  kingdom. 

The  multitude  seems  to  have  forgotten  for  the 
moment  the  open  threats  and  the  double  authority 
of  the  Jewish  rulers.  They  have  cherished  their 
own  thoughts  under  the  leadership  of  Jesus,  and 
now  they  openly  honor  Him  as  the  Christ.  His 
public  entry  into  Jerusalem  reflects  the  popular  rec- 
ognition of  His  kingship.  He  is  more  than  a  prophet 
to  them,  more  than  a  religious  teacher.  They  pro- 
claim Him  the  King  of  Israel  Whom  they  rejoice 
to  recognize  and  to  W^hom  they  openly  offer  this 
spontaneous  outburst  of  devotion.  This  public 
demonstration  on  the  part  of  the  people  has  its 
ground  and  source  in  their  deliberate  thought,  their 

220 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

friendly  feeling,  and  their  religions  pnrpose,  all  of 
which  reqnire  expression.  It  conforms  to  prophecy 
and  shows  a  divine  inspiration  and  a  divine  guid- 
ance. It  needs  no  external  restraint  or  control.  It 
links  itself  with  the  raising  of  Lazarus,  and  honors 
the  One  Who  called  him  forth  in  a  way  He  could 
accept.  It  is  an  appropriate  human  recognition  of 
the  deity  of  Christ  as  already  demonstrated  to  the 
entire  satisfaction  of  earnest,  intelligent  men. 

Jesus  enters  Jerusalem,  the  holy  city,  as  King  of 
Israel,  riding  on  an  ass,  just  as  any  king  or  con- 
queror might  have  done,  while  He  maintains  the 
simplicity  which  placed  Him  in  complete  contrast 
with  all  earthly  rulers.  His  unhindered  progress  is 
dignified,  impressive,  significant,  no  mere  pageant 
calculated  to  impress  the  populace,  but  the  purposed 
presentation  of  this  divine  Person  in  His  official 
character  by  which  He  is  related  to  all  men.  Hence 
men  are  not  mere  spectators,  but  have  their  part  in 
honoring  Him  as  King.  The  event  had  been  pre- 
dicted by  Zechariah  with  historic  accuracy  of  state- 
ment and  vividness  of  description.  Or  shall  we  say 
Jesus  deliberately  fulfilled  this  prophecy  contrary  to 
His  ordinary  habit  of  avoiding  all  public  display? 
Perhaps  we  prefer  to  adjust  prophecy  to  Him  rather 
than  to  adjust  Him  to  prophecy,  for  history  never 
changes  Him,  but  He  steadily  changes  history.  For 
once,  at  the  appropriate  moment  and  for  the  ac- 
complishment of  a  great  end,  the  multitude  honors 
Him  as  the  King  of  Israel,  and  for  once  He  gra- 
ciously accepts  the  honor  because  it  is  in  perfect 
221 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

keeping  with  His  character  and  because  it  furthers 
His  great  mission  among  men. 

An  eminent  writer  teaches  us  that  the  proper 
method  for  man  to  adopt  in  his  effort  to  know  God 
is  recognition  and  not  construction.  Such  must 
have  been  the  method  of  the  first  disciples,  whose 
one  difficulty  was  to  follow  their  great  Leader  in 
His  thought  and  life.  They  were  incapable  of 
forming  a  true  conception  of  Christ  independently, 
just  as  men  always  are,  and  always  will  be.  Person- 
ality calls  for  recognition,  especially  such  as  here 
moves  before  us.  Even  His  resolute  enemies  seem 
on  this  occasion  to  have  accorded  Him  a  certain 
silent  recognition.  They  offer  no  resistance,  contrary 
to  their  preconcerted  plan.  Even  the  disciples  of 
Jesus  fail  to  appreciate  the  full  significance  of  this 
occasion  until  after  the  ascension  of  our  Lord. 
Then  the  deity  of  Christ  was  ascendant  in  their 
thoughts  and  became  the  easy  explanation  of  an 
otherwise  mysterious  event. 

Once  more  the  Pharisees  were  outdone  on  what 
seemed  to  them  their  own  ground,  and  say  among 
themselves,  half  in  self-reproach  and  half  in  self- 
incitement,  ''Behold  how  ye  prevail  nothing ;  lo,  the 
world  is  gone  after  Him."  They  failed  to  antici- 
pate the  movements  of  Jesus  or  even  make  any 
effort  to  prevent  them.  The  co-ordination  of  agen- 
cies and  the  elimination  of  opposition  cannot  be 
explained  as  purely  fortuitous  or  the  result  of  hu- 
man sagacity.  There  must  be  a  higher  co-operating 
and  co-ordinating  agency.  The  kingship  of  Christ 
was  publicly  declared  to  the  Jewish  people  and  to 
222 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

all  nations,  as  such  a  fact  ought  to  be  proclaimed, 
because  the  Person  of  Christ  has  all  the  reality  of 
man  and  God,  and  the  work  of  Christ  in  the  world 
is  no  fanciful  dream,  no  fiction  of  a  disordered  brain, 
but  both  are  great  facts  of  history  and  great  truths 
of  universal  interest  to  men.  No  man  can  know 
Christ  as  he  can  and  ought  to  know  Him  without 
knowing  Him  as  his  King,  and  hence  Christ  must 
reveal  Himself  as  such,  the  King  of  Israel,  the 
Sovereign  of  all  believers  in  all  nations  and  in  all 
ages. 

The  movement  of  many  minds  in  harmonious  rec- 
ognition has  its  value,  but  the  thought  of  the  one 
great  Mind  must  guide  and  govern  us.  What  are 
the  Master's  thoughts,  what  are  His  interpretations, 
what  does  He  say  of  these  events  and  these  momen- 
tous days?  He  begins  each  movement  in  advance, 
and  He  must  close  each  argument  and  each  advance 
movement.  He  is  the  vanguard  and  the  rear  guard 
of  His  people,  the  pillar  of  fire  and  cloud  under 
whose  leadership  they  can  proceed  in  safety.  In 
doctrine,  as  in  life.  He  leads  His  own  where,  un- 
aided, they  could  not  go,  and  unattended  they  could 
not  remain.  He  sitteth  king  forever,  for  men  for- 
ever need  Him  as  their  spiritual  Sovereign. 

According  to  the  twelfth  chapter,  Jesus  is  practi- 
cally free  to  do  and  say  what  He  will.  Perhaps  it 
is  the  calm  that  precedes  the  storm.  But  He  is  the 
same  in  actual  victory  as  in  apparent  defeat.  The 
opposition  of  those  who  have  not  believed  has  not 
driven  Him  into  extremes  and  excesses  of  any  kind, 
nor  does  its  present  removal  unbalance  Him  from 
223 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  opposite  cause.  Evidently  He  is  not  dependent 
on  any  outside  agency  for  the  poise  of  His  person- 
ality or  the  consistency  of  His  mind.  He  is  the 
honored  guest  in  the  home  at  Bethany,  the  King 
of  Israel  in  Jerusalem,  and  the  Son  of  man  accord- 
ing to  His  own  announcement,  the  second  Adam, 
the  real  head  of  the  human  race,  God's  representa- 
tive among  men,  and  man's  representative  before 
God.  Surely  He  is  coming  to  His  own  at  last,  and 
we  are  permitted  to  have  an  unobstructed  view  of 
Him  as  He  is  and  as  He  ought  to  be  known  by  us. 

The  doctrine  of  the  last  public  discourse  of  Jesus 
is  the  doctrine  of  life,  holy  life  and  sacrificial  death, 
a  life  and  death  for  Him  and  them  and  all  men.  He 
thinks  of  Himself  as  the  Son  of  man,  Who  holds 
a  central  place  in  the  economy  of  grace.  He  de- 
clares His  identity  with  humanity  and  at  the  same 
time  His  place  at  the  head  of  humanity,  being  at 
once  really  man  and  representatiively  man,  not 
simply  one  among  men,  but  one  Who  was  the  life 
of  all,  Who  was,  in  fact,  the  one  real  man  because 
He  was  the  one  ideal  man. 

His  teaching  is  not  more  central  than  before,  but 
He  and  His  hearers  are  drawing  nearer  to  that  one 
great,  central  deed.  His  sacrificial  death,  which 
brings  Him  into  relation,  once  more,  with  every 
soul.  They  share  His  words  of  instruction  con- 
cerning the  life  which  they  should  find  as  His  fol- 
lowers. They  have  their  place  and  their  part,  and 
they  must  accept  the  one  and  fulfill  the  other  intelli- 
gently. They,  too,  must  die  in  order  to  live.  This 
principle  is  plainly  written  in  nature  and  has  its 

224 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

illustration  in  the  grain  of  wheat  which  dies  to  pro- 
duce its  harvest.  How  much  more,  then,  are  men  to 
look  for  it  in  the  realm  of  mental  and  moral  and 
spiritual  life?  Nor  does  He  claim  exemption  from 
this  law,  but  characterizes  His  death  as  His  glori- 
fication. It  is  not  destruction,  but  the  condition  of 
fruitful  life.  Any  man  may  follow  Him  here  and 
by  self-renouncing  devotion  to  Him  keep  his  life 
unto  life  eternal.  Here  men  may  become  His  serv- 
ants. His  followers.  His  associates,  and  be  honored 
as  such  by  the  Father. 

For  men,  His  words  are  freighted  with  hope  and 
comfort,  but  for  Himself  they  contain  the  bitter 
pangs  of  physical  death  and  the  unknown  sorrows 
of  a  world's  Savior.  "Now  is  my  soul  troubled; 
and  what  shall  I  say?  Father,  save  Me  from  this 
hour."  That  alone  would  bring  relief,  but  Flis 
prayer  is  not  for  deliverance.  ''But  for  this  cause 
came  I  unto  this  hour.  Father,  glorify  Thy  name." 
He  will  omit  no  essential  part  of  His  life  and  work. 
Men  make  such  omissions  without  estimating  the 
consequences.  Jesus  never  does.  Life  is  a  plain 
path  before  Him  and  a  single  principle  within  Him. 
Men  need  salvation  from  sin,  and  this  Jesus  pro- 
vides by  His  own  sacrificial  death.  Men  need  a 
further  revelation  of  His  deity,  and  this  He  af- 
fords by  means  of  His  suffering  humanity.  A 
voice  out  of  heaven  repeats  His  words  approvingly 
and  confirms  His  course  of  thought  and  action. 
The  multitude  heard  that  voice,  while  the  immediate 
circle  distinguish  the  articulate  sounds,  and  all  are 
impressed  with  a  sense  of  the  supernatural  and 
225 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  evident  nearness  of  the  spiritual  world.  God's 
thunder  awakens  the  human  soul  to  things  divine 
and  eternal,  for  which  it  has  unused  powers  of  ap- 
prehension and  unlimited  powers  of  appreciation. 

Jesus  hears  this  voice  which  He  understands  both 
as  regards  its  source  and  its  significance.  How 
simple  and  satisfactory  His  explanation,  "This 
voice  hath  not  come  for  My  sake  but  for  your  sakes." 
He  regards  it  not  as  thunder  or  even  the  voice  of 
an  angel,  but  just  as  it  purports  to  be,  the  voice  of 
the  Father  in  response  to  His  spoken  prayer, 
"Father,  glorify  Thy  Name."  Already  men  are  be- 
ing taken  into  partnership  with  Him  and  God  in 
heaven  regards  them  with  paternal  interest. 

Racial  relations  are  required  to  fill  out  the  thought 
of  Jesus.  He  enters  individual  life  and  social  life 
and  national  life,  but  the  life  of  the  race  concerns 
Him.  His  greatness  must  be  measured  extensively 
as  well  as  intensively.  "Now  is  the  judgment  of 
this  world :  now  shall  the  prince  of  this  world  be 
cast  out."  The  rightful  Ruler  cannot  be  excluded 
from  Flis  own  kingdom  when  He  comes  in  person 
to  attract  all  men  unto  Himself.  If  He  is  lifted  up 
by  those  who  reject  Him,  it  is  for  the  judgment  of 
this  world,  that  sin  may  see  its  final  standard  of 
condemnation.  H  He  is  crucified  as  a  sinner,  it  is 
that  He  may  become  the  sinless  Savior  of  the  world. 
If  He  dies  on  the  cross,  it  is  that  He  may  live  be- 
yond it  where  death  has  no  power  over  Him.  If  He 
is  slain  in  shame  and  dishonor,  it  is  that  He  may 
attract  men  to  holy  life  and  divine  service.  "And  I, 
if  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth  will  draw  all  men 

226  r 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

unto  Myself."  His  death  enables  men  to  see  Him 
at  the  center  of  human  life,  with  no  other  to  dispute 
His  claim  or  discredit  His  divine  glory.  This  racial 
man  must  fill  out  His  racial  relations.  He  must  die 
in  this  public  manner  because  His  salvation  is  for 
all  mankind.  He  must  die  in  presence  of  the  peo- 
ple, for  He  is  not  only  an  individual  with  family 
and  social  relations,  not  only  a  religious  teacher  and 
a  national  leader,  but  also  and  above  all,  a  world's 
Redeemer,  for  Whom  no  quiet  death-bed  was  pro- 
vided, no  sorrowful  yet  sympathetic  home  scene,  but 
an  uncurtained  world  scene,  awful  in  its  intensity 
of  agony,  in  which  both  God  and  man  are  pro- 
foundly interested. 

The  multitude  think  of  the  Christ  as  one  Who 
abides  forever ;  Who  remains  to  rule  over  His  peo- 
ple, and  hence  they  cannot  reconcile  the  statement 
of  Jesus  respecting"  His  death  with  their  conception 
of  His  Messianic  character  and  work.  H  the  Son  of 
man  must  be  lifted  up,  who,  then,  is  this  Son  of 
man?  Their  implied  thought  is  that  He  cannot  be 
the  Christ.  Jesus  does  not  directly  answer  their 
inquiry,  but  says  to  them  that  their  present  wisdom 
is  to  walk  in  the  light  while  He,  Who  is  the  light, 
remains  with  them,  in  order  to  escape  the  pursuing 
darkness  and  in  order  to  avoid  losing  their  way.  He 
asks  them  to  believe  in  the  light  while  it  is  with 
them,  that  they  may  become  sons  of  light.  They  are 
concerned  about  Him,  while  He  is  concerned  about 
them.  They  do  well  to  take  up  their  own  case,  for 
Jesus  has  made  possible  for  them  a  sonship  they  can 
realize,  and  in  their  realization  they  will  better  un- 
227 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

derstand  Him  as  well  as  themselves.  Only  as  sons 
of  light  can  they  properly  appreciate  Him  as  the 
light,  the  prime  condition  of  logical  thinking,  right 
conduct,  and  worthy  life.  As  the  light  of  men,  as 
the  head  of  the  race,  as  the  Savior  of  the  world.  He 
abides  forever. 

We  may  wonder  that  Jesus  anticipates  His  death 
and  accepts  it  again  and  again  as  His  appointed 
duty,  but  another  state  of  mind  ensues  when  we 
consider  His  death  not  only  as  a  historic  event,  but 
also  as  a  spiritual  victory  over  evil.  He  knows  the 
hour  of  His  glorification  and  prepares  Himself  for 
it  as  well  as  those  for  whom  He  endures  it.  He 
never  calls  it  His  hour  of  disgrace,  because  to  Him 
it  is  a  nobler  thing.  How  could  death  overtake  Him 
unawares?  How  could  it  be  to  Him  other  than 
just  what  it  was?  He  anticipated  it  in  all  its  sig- 
nificance to  Himself  as  the  Son  of  man,  and  to  man- 
kind as  sinful  and  out  of  harmony  within  itself  and 
with  every  rank  and  order  of  worthy  being.  His 
life,  when  apparently  lost,  becomes  more  fruitful 
than  ever  before,  for  while  He  attracted  a  limited 
number  before,  now  He  "draws  all  men  unto  Him- 
self." 

A  true  interpretation  of  the  life  of  Jesus  affords 
a  correct  explanation  of  every  human  life.  His 
philosophy  elucidates  life  from  first  to  last,  recon- 
ciles all  the  facts  in  the  case,  and  covers  the  case  as 
a  whole.  If  Jesus  dies  to  save  men,  men  must  die 
to  be  saved.  The  salvation  of  any  man  comes  by 
the  voluntary  loss  of  his  own  life.  He,  too,  dies  to 
live.  The  grain  of  wheat  can  multiply  and  live 
228 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

again  in  perpetual  reproduction  only  by  its  death  in 
the  moist  earth.  Thus  man  loses  his  life  that  he  may 
find  it,  but  for  him  his  new  life  is  a  higher  type  and 
a  more  enduring  kind.  Thus  the  philosophy  of 
Jesus  touches  the  center  of  life,  both  His  and  ours, 
and  thus  also  He  comes  close  to  us,  not  merely  in 
the  accidents  of  time  and  space  and  bodily  presence, 
but  above  all  in  the  great  essential  facts  of  life  and 
being  and  personality. 

Do  we  wonder  that  Jesus  hides  Himself  from 
the  people  because  many  of  them  failed  to  believe 
after  seeing  His  signs  ?  Gracious  teaching,  welcome 
truth,  conclusive  argument,  divine  acts  of  deliver- 
ance, a  sinless  life,  a  presence  alike  gentle  and  holy, 
can  all  these  call  forth  only  an  ephemeral  faith? 
The  prophet  Isaiah  long  before  predicted  this  fail- 
ure of  faith  to  answer  as  it  should  the  divine  appeal. 
Only  too  few  believe  and  too  few  achieve  a  rad- 
ical faith.  Only  too  few  appreciate  the  revelation 
that  has  been  made,  and  hence  Jesus  withdraws 
from  them  temporarily.  Our  psychology  mingles 
the  ingredients  of  our  conduct  and  thereby  fixes  the 
facts  of  history.  What  can  be  done  except  this,  re- 
move the  unappreciated  opportunity?  Isaiah  even 
declares  that  the  Lord  blinds  the  eyes  of  the  un- 
believing and  hardens  their  hearts,  lest  they  should 
see  and  perceive  and  turn  and  be  healed.  The  in- 
verting of  the  soul  brings  its  own  punishment  and 
also  the  divine  disapproval.  The  coming  of  the 
Christ  offers  the  supreme  opportunity  to  know  God 
and  also  an  equal  opportunity  to  reject  Him,  and 
the  prophet  sees  both  as  he  looks  into  the  future. 
229 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

"Nevertheless  even  of  the  rulers  many  believed 
on  Him;  but  because  of  the  Pharisees  they  did  not 
confess  it,  lest  they  should  be  put  out  of  the  syn- 
agogue." Their  fear  was  stronger  than  their  faith, 
and  their  faith,  under  apostolic  analysis,  showed 
the  presence  of  one  exotic  element,  "they  loved  the 
glory  that  is  of  men  more  than  the  glory  that  is  of 
God."  In  their  conduct,  men  are  guided  by  reasons 
of  some  kind,  however  low,  and  governed  by  mo- 
tives, however  unworthy. 

The  last  paragraph  of  the  twelfth  chapter  is  a 
brief  summary  of  His  teaching  without  controver- 
sial tone  or  tendency.  He  declares  His  relation  to 
the  believer,  to  all  men,  and  to  the  Father.  The  man 
who  believes  on  Jesus  believes  on  Him  Who  sent 
Him,  and  the  man  who  sees  Jesus  sees  the  One  Who 
sent  Him.  The  vision  of  God  has  been  made  pos- 
sible to  every  human  spirit,  and  the  relation  of 
faith  has  been  made  real  to  every  believing  heart. 
The  man  is  not  limited  above.  Religious  faith  and 
spiritual  sight  have  God  as  their  ultimate  object,  not 
as  an  abstract  idea,  but  as  a  concrete  person.  Thus 
the  believer  realizes  his  relation  to  God  through 
Jesus  Christ. 

As  the  moral  light  of  men  and  the  divine  Savior 
of  the  world,  Jesus  comes  to  men  who  are  in  dark- 
ness and  who  need  salvation.  He  awakens  faith, 
that  all  He  is  may  have  its  proper  effect  in  a  saving 
and  regenerating  ministry.  Not  as  a  judge  does 
He  now  come  to  the  world,  but  men  who  reject 
Him  now  will  be  judged  by  His  words  at  the  last 
great  day.  His  words,  divine  in  source  and  signif- 
230 


National  Recognition  as  King  of  Israel 

icance,  which  offer  salvation  now  will  call  down 
condemnation  then.  They  can  be  disregarded  now, 
but  not  then.  Truth  abides,  and  men  who  have  no 
place  for  truth  in  mind  and  heart  must  eventually 
find  a  great  gulf  fixed  between  themselves  and  the 
truth  which  they  have  deliberately  disowned. 

Not  from  Himself  alone,  does  Jesus  speak,  but 
from  the  Father  also,  Whose  divine  right  and  au- 
thority He  always  honors.  'The  Father  that  sent 
Me,  He  hath  given  Me  a  commandment,  what  1 
should  say  and  what  I  should  speak.  And  I  know 
that  His  commandment  is  life  eternal."  This  com- 
mandment governs  the  speech  of  Jesus  and  keeps 
Him  in  harmony  with  heaven  while  He  ministers  to 
men  on  earth.  It  contains  eternal  life  as  the  acorn 
contains  the  oak.  After  showing  that  He  is  in 
perfect  harmony  with  the  Father,  and  that  His  doc- 
trine is  derived  from  the  divine  command,  He  places 
His  seal  upon  His  words,  "so  I  speak."  No  doubt 
distresses  Him,  no  fear  haunts  Him,  no  regret  over- 
takes Him. 

If  indeed  Jesus  is  the  king  of  Israel,  as  He  was 
publicly  proclaimed ;  if  His  deity  was  demonstrated 
by  the  raising  of  Lazarus ;  if  His  teaching  and  His 
work  bore  steadily  toward  this  supreme  revelation 
of  Himself ;  can  we  question  His  conclusions  or 
.doubt  His  character?  Does  not  doubt  stand  con- 
demned, and  is  not  faith  fully  vindicated?  What 
seems  hard  to  men  ought  to  be  easy,  and  what  seems 
easy  ought  to  be  hard.  The  philosophy  of  Jesus, 
like  His  religion,  is  divine  in  content.  God  cannot 
be  eliminated  from  the  human  mind  without  con- 

231 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

structing  contradictory  conceptions  and  reaching  ir- 
rational conclusions.  Hence  His  doctrine  contains 
the  essential  elements  of  the  final  philosophy  and 
the  very  substance  of  the  absolute  religion.  He  is  to 
mankind  and  to  each  individual  man,  all  He  repre- 
sents Himself  to  be,  and  when  this  truth  took  pos- 
session of  the  people,  the  national  recognition  of 
Jesus  became  possible,  harmonizing  with  prophetic 
announcement,  with  divine  providence,  and  with 
the  racial  conceptions  of  Jesus  Himself. 

Thus  we  have  come,  step  by  step,  to  the  climax  of 
His  manifestation  as  the  promised  Messiah  to  Israel 
and  to  the  world.  The  first  great  movement  in  the 
Gospel  of  John  is  closely  followed  by  another  course 
of  activity  and  another  climax  of  self -revelation  in 
the  realm  of  personal  religious  life  which  we  now 
proceed  to  consider. 


232 


PART  III 
The  Spiritual  Leader 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 
Individual  Dealing  and  Personal  Ministry. 

The  transition  from  the  Messianic  manifestation 
to  the  spiritual  revelation  of  our  Lord  is  made  in 
John's  accustomed  way.  He  takes  up  a  new  fact 
which  leads  on  to  the  new  order  of  events.  In  the 
briefest  possible  time  he  proceeds  with  his  portrayal 
of  Jesus  in  the  changed  conditions  and  relations. 
His  Christ  is  a  living,  moving  Person,  Whose  sur- 
roundings and  associations  become  the  screen  on 
which  His  figure  is  reflected.  We  have  just  seen 
Him  riding  into  Jerusalem  in  the  presence  of  a  re- 
joicing multitude,  and  now  we  are  ro  behold  Him 
dealing  with  each  disciple  separately  in  order  to 
bring  each  one  into  closer  fellowship  with  Himself. 

Jesus  never  saves  men  in  the  mass.  He  always 
individualizes  them  and  deals  with  them,  one  by  one, 
however  impossible  this  method  may  seem  to  a 
finite  mind.  He  separates  them  from  the  multitude 
and  singles  them  out  before  Him,  as  when  He  says 
to  Peter,  "If  I  wash  thee  not,  thou  hast  no  part  with 
Me,"  a  statement  of  deep,  personal  import  and  also 
a  truth  for  general  application.  Every  case,  how- 
ever ordinary,  requires  the  personal  ministry  of 
Jesus.  One  by  one  Jesus  washes  the  disciples'  feet, 
thus  rendering  a  service  which  He  assures  them 
they  will  subsequently  understand.  "What  I  do 
thou  knowest  not  now ;  but  thou  shalt  understand 
hereafter." 

233 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

They  may  need  this  lesson  in  individual  dealing 
and  personal  ministry  immediately  after  the  public 
recognition  which  seemed  to  promise  so  much  and 
which  actually  yielded  so  little  according  to  their 
view.  They  were  apt  in  seeking  honor  and  great- 
ness, but  less  apt  in  humility,  that  Christian  virtue 
which  no  heathen  religion  has  been  able  to  imitate 
or  even  teach  successfully.  Jesus  has  never  been 
charged  with  borrowing  this  virtue  from  some  otlier 
moral  and  religious  teacher.  A  doubt  can  be  raised 
concerning  almost  any  truth  or  teaching  in  a  preju- 
diced or  otherwise  limited  intelligence,  but  truth  is 
its  own  vindication,  and  asks  no  aid  of  evil  or  error, 
as  it  could  receive  none  in  case  it  were  offered. 
Truth  cannot  stultify  itself,  but  abides  in  honor  even 
when  it  walks  in  humility. 

The  washing  of  the  disciples'  feet  by  Jesus  is  an 
act  worthy  of  Him  in  every  way;  the  very  concep- 
tion, the  personal  performance,  and  the  subsequent 
interpretation.  His  disciples  must  learn  from  Him 
the  secret  of  His  life  among  men,  His  individual 
dealing  and  personal  ministry,  both  of  which  are 
made  possible  by  His  humility,  that  virtue  which 
shines  brightest  in  the  greatest  souls.  The  greatest 
must  minister  to  those  who  are  less,  down  to  the 
very  least,  as  the  means  of  their  uplifting  and  as  a 
matter  of  choice  and  personal  interest  that  has  no 
flavor  of  condescension.  Such  is  the  economy  of 
grace.  Surely  no  dignity  is  lost  and  no  divine  rela- 
tion destroyed,  but  both  shine  clearer  in  the  esti- 
mation of  each  one  to  whom  the  Master  ministers  as 
a  servant. 

234 


Individual  Dealing  and  Personal  Ministry 

First,  we  are  invited  to  enter  the  wonderful  con- 
sciousness of  Christ.  He  is  perfectly  conscious  of 
Himself  in  His  human  and  in  His  divine  nature.  He 
knows  Himself  on  all  sides,  and  in  every  relation. 
He  is  not  the  victim  of  doubt  or  forgetfulness. 
There  has  been  no  lapse  of  memory,  no  failure  of 
judgment,  no  reversion  of  thought,  but  He  is  all 
He  has  declared  Himself  to  be  in  person  and  char- 
acter and  work.  In  His  dignity  as  man's  redeemer 
and  God's  representative  He  takes  up  this  menial 
task.  He  knows  Himself  as  man's  redeemer,  and 
hence  describes  Himself  in  reference  to  men,  to 
evil  beings,  and  to  God,  the  Father. 

His  thoughts  gather  under  three  separate  heads. 
Under  the  first  He  declares  that  His  hour  has  come, 
that  hour  of  death  so  often  present  to  His  mind,  that 
hour  of  which  He  was  so  completely  conscious,  that 
hour  which  marks  His  departure  from  this  world 
and  His  entrance  into  the  presence  of  God  as  man's 
Savior  and  Intercessor.  Under  the  second  head 
He  declares  that  He  had  loved  His  own  that  were 
in  the  world,  and  that  He  had  loved  them  to  the 
end.  He  knew  the  motions  of  evil  also,  and  that 
the  devil  had  already  put  it  into  the  heart  of  Judas 
to  betray  Him.  Under  the  third  head  we  are  told 
that  Jesus  knew  ''that  the  Father  had  given  all 
things  into  His  hands  and  that  He  came  forth  from 
God"  and  returned  to  God. 

Thus  Jesus  knows  Himself.  Thus  He  is  con- 
scious of  Himself  in  view  of  all  He  has  stated  con- 
cerning Himself,  and  more  conscious  than  men  can 
conceive  from  their  knowledge  of  themselves.  Thus 
235 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

He  girds  His  mind  in  thought  before  He  girds  his 
body  with  the  towel.  His  greatness,  fully  revealed 
in  His  own  knowledge  of  Himself,  finds  expression 
in  His  humility  by  means  of  a  menial  service  He 
refuses  to  omit  in  a  single  instance.  Each  disciple 
must  receive  individually  the  personal  ministration 
of  Jesus,  however  lowly  it  may  appear.  Jesus  must 
look  in  upon  man's  sin  and  weakness  in  order  to 
save  him  from  them.  The  lesser  consciousness  must 
be  illuminated  by  the  larger,  and  as  the  lesser  can- 
not measure  up  to  the  larger  in  its  greater  intensity 
and  wider  range,  the  larger  must  come  to  the  lesser. 
Christian  humility  shines  with  its  native  luster  when 
the  greatest  ministers  to  the  least,  when  Christian 
character  expresses  itself  in  Christian  service,  and 
when  the  dignity  of  divine  personality  bends  over 
potential  greatness. 

Christ  is  conscious  of  His  own  greatness  in  His 
individual  dealing  with  men  and  His  personal  min- 
istry to  them,  and  His  humility  is  in  no  sense  ex- 
ternal and  unreal,  but  rather  offers  free  course  to 
His  human  sympathy  and  His  divine  love.  He  in- 
terprets His  example  that  they  may  follow  it  and 
that  it  may  have  the  same  significance  for  all  men. 
He  enters  into  their  field  of  knowledge  and  even 
into  their  consciousness,  where  they  consider,  appre- 
ciate, and  understand,  where  their  mental  processes 
proceed,  their  conclusions  are  framed,  and  their 
characters  formed.  First,  He  calls  their  attention 
to  His  relation  to  them  and  their  relation  to  Him. 
"Know  ye  what  I  have  done  unto  you?"  His  act 
is  significant  and  worthy  of  their  thoughtful  con- 

236 


Individual  Dealing  and  Personal  Ministry 

sideration.  They  call  Him  Teacher  and  Lord,  and 
as  such  He  has  ministered  to  them  in  the  most 
menial  service,  with  the  highest  possible  motive.  In 
like  manner  should  they  minister  to  each  other  in- 
dividually and  personally  with  Qiristian  humility, 
based  on  Christian  consciousness.  Second,  He  calls 
their  attention  to  their  relation  to  each  other.  His 
ministry  to  them  argues  their  ministry  to  each 
other,  ''ye  also  ought  to  wash  one  another's  feet." 
His  ministry  is  universal,  while  theirs  is  partial. 
Theirs,  like  His,  may  appear  menial,  but  it  should 
be  inspired  by  the  highest  motives.  He  gives  His 
own  act  as  their  example.  They  are  to  be  real  min- 
isters, like  Himself,  offering  real  worth  in  real  serv- 
ice. Humility  marks  the  manner  and  reveals  the 
mind  of  greatness  as  it  comes  alongside  of  littleness, 
while  on  the  other  hand  it  shows  a  right  relation  to 
its  Lord  and  thus  enables  the  free  spirit  to  realize 
a  true  self-hood. 

In  the  family  of  God,  the  servant  must  learn  to 
know  his  place  with  reference  to  his  superior.  The 
servant  of  Jesus  is  not  greater  than  Jesus  nor  is 
Jesus  greater  than  Him  Who  sent  Him.  The  prin- 
ciple is  thorough-going,  and  its  right  application  is 
the  basis  of  personal  happiness.  There  is  evident 
danger  of  the  servant  thinking  that  he  is  greater 
than  his  lord  and  acting  accordingly,  but  his  happi- 
ness, as  well  as  his  real  and  relative  greatness,  lies 
in  faithfully  doing  what  Jesus  here  so  faithfully 
teaches.  Can  we  think  of  Jesus  considering  His 
own  little  company  of  twelve  and  not  mentioning 
the  one  among  them  who  possessed  a  different  spirit, 

237 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

who  served  as  His  betrayer  and  who  was  chosen 
with  this  end  in  view?  This  one  who  shared  the 
teaching  of  Jesus  and  every  ministry  until  this 
hour  lifted  his  heel  in  opposition  as  deliberately  as 
though  his  darkened  heart  was  completely  hidden 
from  the  mind  of  the  Master.  Our  Lord  foretells 
this  defection  that  the  rest  may  have  no  share  in  it, 
but  may  believe  in  Him  by  reason  of  it.  With 
double  emphasis  He  teaches  them  a  great  principle 
which  applies  to  their  ministry  as  believers.  "He 
that  receiveth  whomsoever  I  send  receiveth  Me ; 
and  he  that  receiveth  Me  receiveth  Him  that  sent 
Me."  Men  say  the  lower  must  minister  to  the 
higher.  Jesus  says  the  higher  must  minister  to  the 
lower.  This  is  the  mission  of  greatness.  The  least 
cannot  be  satisfied  without  the  greater  and  the 
greatest  in  the  one  ascending  scale.  The  gre-atest 
can  be  received  by  the  less  and  even  the  least,  and 
the  less,  if  not  the  least,  can  take  up  the  task  of 
making  known  the  greatest.  Such  is  this  personal 
ministry  which  was  instituted  by  Jesus  Christ  and 
which  could  be  instituted  by  Him  alone. 

When  we  observe  that  the  greatness  of  the  Chris- 
tian appears  in  close  connection  with  his  humility, 
we  discover  a  necessity  of  being  as  well  as  a  neces- 
sity of  thought.  The  most  worthy  can  be  the  most 
humble,  and,  as  Christians,  they  should  claim  their 
privilege.  Virtue  must  be  voluntary  to  be  real. 
Will  is  one  ingredient  as  well  as  intelligence.  A 
true  self-realization  precedes  a  true  humility ;  a  true 
humility  prepares  the  man  for  a  true  ministry ;  a 

238 


Individual  Dealing  and  Personal  Ministry 

true  ministry  is  necessary  to  produce  or  maintain 
a  true  Christian  brotherhood. 

The  individual  interest  and  the  personal  relation 
of  Jesus  to  His  disciples  have  their  contrast  in  the 
betrayal.  Opposition  is  active  if  not  altogether  in- 
telligent. It  operates  in  its  own  limited  sphere  and 
seeks  to  secure  its  own  ends  and  to  perpetuate  its 
own  life.  It  fails  to  take  a  broad  view  because  it  is 
itself  narrow  and  limited  and  because  it  deliberately 
refuses  to  accept  the  broader  views  of  the  great 
Teacher.  A  man's  way  is  always  right  in  his  own 
eyes  because  it  harmonizes  with  his  own  system  of 
thinking,  but  the  outcome  may  show  results  which, 
to  him,  even,  are  entirely  unsatisfactory,  unex- 
pected, and  perhaps  incomprehensible. 

The  men  who  surround  Jesus  have  their  system 
of  thought  and  their  theory  of  life,  their  morality 
and  religion,  their  faith  and  their  philosophy. 
Their  minds  are  by  no  means  blank  sheets  of  paper 
on  which  the  great  Teacher  can  record  truth  for 
the  first  time.  Rather  are  they  like  old  manuscripts 
that  have  been  used  again  and  again  and  yet  are 
to  receive  another  imprint.  What  wonder  if  the 
teaching  of  Jesus  became  confused  with  what  was 
already  there?  What  wonder  if  the  old  persists  and 
at  times  even  contradicts  the  new?  Judas  tries  to 
harmonize  all  that  comes  within  his  knowledge  on 
the  basis  of  his  own  being,  and  asks  conformity  to 
his  idea  and  his  will  as  dogmatically  as  any  confes- 
sor of  the  faith.  Evil  comes  to  its  maturity,  and 
when  it  appears  in  a  personality  finally  formed,  that 
personality  asserts  the  supremacy  of  its  own  wis- 

239 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

dom  and  even  its  own  will.  The  presence  of  Jesus 
has  no  power  to  change  the  character  of  Judas  or 
check  his  personal  development.  The  effect  appears 
to  be  the  very  opposite.  The  betrayal  of  Jesus  by 
Judas  gives  us  a  full  view  of  evil  in  its  maturity. 
It  assumes  and  asserts  its  right  to  co-operate  with 
the  enemies  of  Jesus,  to  exist  independently  of  Him, 
to  act  in  almost  open  opposition  to  Him,  to  work 
out  its  idea,  whatever  of  injury  may  accrue  to  oth- 
ers. In  asserting  its  right  to  exist,  evil  asserts  its 
right  to  defeat  or  even  destroy  the  good. 

When  Jesus  thought  of  His  betrayal  so  near  at 
hand  and  so  soon  to  be  enacted,  "He  was  troubled 
in  spirit."  His  announcement,  "Verily,  verily  I  say 
unto  you  that  one  of  you  shall  betray  Me,"  reveals 
again  His  individual  dealing.  For  this  one  He  had 
no  further  ministry,  only  one  sad  request,  one  sor- 
rowful command.  He  knew  the  growing  estrange- 
ment of  this  one,  who  was  called  to  be  an  apostle, 
and  we  may  well  believe  that  He  is  yet  sensitive 
concerning  his  ingratitude,  his  irresponsiveness,  and 
his  sin,  for  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Savior  of  the  world. 
He  has  disowned  no  sinner,  but  a  sinner  has  dis- 
owned Him  and  closed  forever  the  path  of  divine 
approach  and  the  heart  of  divine  love.  Jesus  never 
ruthlessly  frightens  His  followers.  The  disciples 
looked  at  one  another,  doubting  of  whom  He  spoke, 
each  unwilling  to  believe  that  he  could  do  such  a 
deed.  Jesus  therefore  designates  His  betrayer  by 
a  significant  act,  and  thus  relieves  the  needless  sus- 
pense of  the  eleven  respecting  their  own  innocence. 
He. deals  with  the  eleven  as  well  as  the  one.  John 
240 


Individual  Dealing  and  Personal  Ministry 

tells  us  that  after  Judas  is  thus  pointed  out  as  His 
betrayer,  ''Satan  entered  into  him."  This  completes 
his  combination  with  evil.  Why  should  he  longer 
remain  in  the  company  of  Christ?  Jesus  therefore 
said  unto  him,  "What  thou  doest,  do  quickly."  He 
carries  out  his  own  design  while  he  obeys  the  com- 
mand of  Jesus,  which  in  no  way  interferes  with  his 
mental  state  or  purposed  action.  When  he  goes 
forth  from  that  little  company  "it  is  night,"  with 
no  returning  day  to  revive  a  dying  hope  or  offer  one 
more  opportunity  of  salvation  to  a  soul  which  has 
sunk  down  into  the  unfathomed  depths  of  dark 
despair. 

John  speaks  of  Satan  with  the  same  certitude  and 
accuracy  of  knowledge  that  he  exhibits  in  describ- 
ing any  other  personality.  His  mind  harbors  no 
doubt  respecting  Satan  as  an  evil  being,  opposed 
to  Christ,  active  among  men,  and  ready  to  associate 
himself  with  any  man  whose  will  bends  before  him 
as  it  should  bow  in  submission  to  God.  A  modern 
candidate  for  popular  leadership  and  popular  ap- 
plause has  blandly  asserted  that  "the  man  who  be- 
lieves in  a  personal  devil  is  one."  His  epigram  can- 
not cover  the  fallacy  and  the  falsehood  of  his  asser- 
tion except  in  the  estimation  of  the  unwary  or  the 
evil-minded.  A  man  no  more  becomes  a  personal 
devil  by  believing  that  a  personal  devil  exists,  than 
a  man  becomes  a  saint  by  believing  in  the  existence 
of  a  saint.  Intellectual  faith  alone  cannot  determine 
being.  The  demons  believe  intellectually  in  a  per- 
sonal God,  but  show  no  tendency  to  become  like 
Him — they  only  shudder.  The  will  is  shaken  by 
241 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Jesus  teaches  His  disciples  as  little  children  to 
value  His  presence,  which  is  so  soon  to  be  with- 
drawn from  them.  What  He  had  said  to  the  Jews, 
He  now  says  to  them,  "Whither  I  go  ye  cannot 
come."  They  are  to  remain  here  for  personal  min- 
istry. He  links  His  life  to  theirs  by  a  new  com- 
mandment, which  Hnks  life  to  Hfe  in  the  Christian 
brotherhood  and  thus  conclusively  and  continually 
demonstrates  to  all  men,  whether  inside  or  outside  of 
that  brotherhood,  that  all  who  share  His  life  are  His 
disciples.  His  religion  rests  on  no  ulterior  aids.  It 
must  be  known  by  what  it  really  is  and  by  what  it 
actually  does.  His  love  to  them  becomes  the  measure 
of  their  love  to  each  other,  easily  transcending 
the  old  commandment,  ''Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbor  as  thyself."  This,  then,  is  His  command- 
ment, which  is  given  to  them  and  which  becomes 
the  distinguishing  mark  of  discipleship  the  world 
over. 

The  religion  of  Jesus  is  a  religion  of  essentials, 
and  not  of  incidents  and  accidents ;  it  appeals  to  in- 
dividuals primarily  and  not  to  masses;  it  is  em- 
bodied in  personal  relations  and  not  in  common 
practice  and  established  forms.  It  lives  and  moves 
on  the  level  of  Christ's  own  life  and  never  sinks 
below  it  even  in  its  humblest  ministry,  while  it  can- 
not rise  above  it  in  its  highest  exaltation  of  duty 
and  devotion. 

One  more  instance  of  individual  dealing  and  per- 
sonal ministry  closes  the  thirteenth  chapter  of  the 
Gospel.  Peter  inquires  of  the  departure  of  Jesus, 
Who  assures  him  that  he  cannot  follow  Him  now, 
244 


Individual  Dealing  and  Personal  Ministry 

but  he  shall  follow  afterwards.  Peter  believes  his 
devotion  is  perfect,  and  therefore  he  can  follow  Him 
wherever  He  may  go.  As  he  reads  his  own  heart 
he  asserts,  "I  will  lay  down  my  life  for  Thee,"  be- 
lieving his  statement  was  true  beyond  contradiction 
or  correction.  But  Jesus  reads  his  mind  with  a 
very  different  result.  "Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto 
thee,  The  cock  shall  not  crow  till  thou  hast  denied 
Me  thrice."  Thus  Jesus  foretold  Peter's  denial, 
which  is  not  the  same  as  betrayal,  not  the  absence 
of  faith,  but  the  failure  of  faith.  Peter's  pro- 
fession has  the  form  of  truth,  but  lacks  the  sub- 
stance, such  as  Jesus  placed  in  His  assertion,  I  am 
the  truth.  It  lacked  the  meaning  imparted  by  the 
resolute  will  and  the  personality  as  a  whole,  as  he 
soon  discovered  by  sad  experience.  But  Jesus  must 
show  men  who  they  really  are  if  He  is  ever  to  make 
them  what  they  really  ought  to  be.  He  must  enter 
their  inner  life  and  reveal  its  hidden  depths.  John 
reviews  this  proces?  md  places  the  several  agents 
concerned  in  the  Hght  where  men  may  see  them, 
Jesus,  Judas,  Satan,  and  Peter;  Jesus  as  the  head 
of  the  race ;  Judas  betraying  Him  into  the  hands  of 
men  who  are  not  racial,  however  proudly  they  pro- 
fess to  be  religious;  Satan  as  an  active  agent  of 
evil,  personal  in  being  and  life,  able  to  influence 
men  and  the  one  great  opposer  of  Christ ;  Peter  who 
thought  he  knew  himself,  but  who  found  that  Jesus 
knew  him  far  better.  Downward  into  the  individ- 
ual human  consciousness  and  upward  into  the  con- 
scious life  of  God,  Jesus  moves  unhindered,  the 
Savior  of  the  soul  to  whom  He  offers  His  direct  in- 
245 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

dividual   attention   and   His   sympathetic,   personal 
ministry. 

Thus  far  we  have  seen  evil  and  good  in  contrast 
and  in  conflict.  Neither  has  driven  the  other  from 
the  field.  In  the  thirteenth  chapter  we  see  them  sep- 
arating and  each  cultivating  its  own  thoughts.  The 
conflict  is  not  over,  but  each  has  its  own  end«  and 
aims,  and  these  are  more  clearly  defined  than  ever 
before.  In  the  fourteenth  chapter  a  new  develop- 
ment of  life  engages  our  attention.  The  good  un- 
folds unhindered,  except  by  the  slow  processes  of 
the  human  mind  in  its  effort  to  receive  and  assim- 
ilate the  truth.  The  good  is  not  dependent  upon 
the  evil  nor  is  it  conditioned  by  it.  Its  life  and 
being  are  its  own,  for  it  has  a  place  and  a  kingdom. 
**You  know  how  love  is  incompatible 

With  falsehood — purifies,  assimilates 

All  other  passions  to  itself," 
says  the  poet,  and  thus  it  builds  its  own  kingdom 
out  of  its  own  life,  both  of  which  are  spiritual  and 
eternal. 


246 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

The  deep  personal  interest  in  His  disciples  which 
was  manifested  by  Jesus  and  which  we  find  re- 
corded by  John  in  his  thirteenth  chapter,  leads  us 
logically  to  their  response  as  found  in  the  fourteenth, 
a  response  which  Jesus  must  claim  and  cultivate  in 
order  to  raise  it  to  its  proper  level  and  in  order  to 
infuse  into  it  its  proper  life.  The  ministry  of  Christ 
has  its  fruitage  in  Christian  manhood.  If  He  de- 
fines in  words,  He  also  establishes  in  fact  the  re- 
lation we  call  religion.  He  brings  men  individually 
into  right  relation  with  God,  and  as  a  next  step 
unites  them  in  the  sacred  bonds  of  Christian  fellow- 
ship. The  individual  Christian  originally  precedes 
the  Church,  but  he  can  be  perfected  only  in  the 
society  of  believers.  Thus  the  Christian  religion  is 
a  personal  fact  from  the  very  beginning,  and  so  con- 
tinues in  the  organized  body  of  the  Church,  which 
recognizes  personal  religion  as  its  object,  if  not 
also  its  origin. 

The  religious  unit  concerns  Christ  most  deeply 
and  definitely,  and  therefore  receives  His  first  con- 
sideration. He  deals  with  men  individually,  and 
thus  prepares  the  way  for  personal  religion  with 
its  pergonal  knowledge  and  personal  experience 
blended  in  equal  parts.  He  leads  His  disciples  right 
into  the  realm  of  moral  and  spiritual  life  and  en- 
ables them  to  know  themselves  as  moral  and  spir- 
247 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

itual  beings.  He  greatly  enhances  their  self-con- 
sciousness by  His  revelation  of  God  as  Father  and 
by  bringing  them  into  right  relation  to  Him. 

We  are  accustomed  to  think  of  man  as  soul  or 
spirit  without  regarding  these  as  different  in  es- 
sence and  origin.  When  we  speak  of  the  soul,  we 
mean  the  embodied  life  of  man,  and  when  we  speak 
of  the  spirit  we  mean  the  life  of  man  as  it  comes 
from  God.  The  former  operates  within  human 
limits,  while  the  latter  has  a  wider  range  of  activity. 
The  spirit  appears  as  the  principle  of  life,  and  when 
this  principle  is  spoken  of  as  conditioned  by  the 
body,  it  is  called  the  soul,  but  when  it  is  considered 
in  itself  or  as  coming  from  God,  it  is  called  the 
spirit.  When  the  spirit  objectifies  itself  and  knows 
that  it  thinks  and  feels  and  wills,  it  attains  self- 
consciousness,  the  characteristic  fact  in  what  is 
called  personality.  By  individuality  we  mean  that 
original  endowment  which  constitutes  and  charac- 
terizes any  particular  man.  By  personality  we  mean 
the  selfhood  as  reconstituted  or  confirmed  by  its 
own  choices  amid  the  various  educative  processes 
of  experience.  Personal  religion,  therefore,  covers 
the  whole  field  of  personal  choice,  all  those  activities 
and  agencies  that  help  to  determine  the  kind  and 
quality  of  manhood. 

To  be  sure,  our  conceptions  as  thus  stated  are 
derived  from  the  Scriptures.  We  find  a  certain 
pleasure,  however,  in  the  assurance  that  our  most 
advanced  knowledge  harmonizes  with  the  first  great 
facts.  We  note  with  new  interest  that  the  person- 
ality of  Jesus  appears  to  be  the  immediate  source 

248 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

of  Christian  experience.  He  mingles  with  men, 
touching  them  in  unnumbered  ways  in  order  to  call 
forth  their  minds  and  hearts.  Surrounded  by  His 
disciples,  who  are  in  full  sympathy  with  Him, 
Judas  having  previously  departed,  Jesus  speaks 
with  greater  freedom,  while  His  interested  hearers 
follow  Him  more  closely  as  He  seeks  to  lift  them 
to  the  level  of  His  own  thought  and  life.  How 
vividly  He  describes  those  spiritual  states  and  de- 
fines those  personal  relations  which  constitute  re- 
ligious life  as  He  knows  it.  The  whole  realm  of 
spiritual  realities  lies  open  before  Him  and  He 
freely  admits  each  earnest  inquirer  who  seeks  to 
enter  there.  His  superior  nature  makes  its  appeal 
and  leaves  its  imprint  while  He  invited  His  dis- 
ciples to  realize  the  religious,  the  spiritual,  the  di- 
vine life,  which  He  makes  possible  for  them  as 
beings  who,  by  creation,  bear  the  image  of  God. 

The  prospect  of  His  departure  spells  disaster  to 
His  disciples  according  to  their  best  knowledge  and 
their  unaided  power  to  forecast  the  result.  He  has 
been  the  One  among  them,  the  One  Who  called 
them  and  led  them  and  taught  them ;  the  One  Who 
won  the  interest  of  the  people  and  Who  contended 
with  relentless  opposers ;  the  One  Who  alone  could 
carry  forward  the  unfinished  task  and  bring  it  to 
its  completion.  They  are  troubled  while  He  is  say- 
ing to  them,  "Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled:  be- 
lieve in  God,  believe  also  in  Me."  Believe  in  Me 
the  same  as  you  believe  in  God,  absolutely  and  not 
relatively  as  you  have  learned  to  believe  in  men. 
Thus  He  endeavors  to  free  their  hearts  from  trouble, 
249 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

for  how  can  they  think  freely  with  this  burden 
resting  upon  them  and  this  influence  continually 
affecting  them?  How  can  they  appreciate  the 
higher  life  unless  it  answers  their  present  need  and 
unless  it  has  already  begun  within  them?  Faith  in 
God  and  faith  in  Christ  are  principles  of  the  mental, 
moral,  and  religious  life  which  will  sustain  their 
hearts  and  dismiss  their  trouble,  however  real  it 
appears  to  them.  Is  he  not  thinking  of  their  future, 
as  well  as  His  own,  and  does  He  not  bear  upon  His 
heart  the  burden  of  their  present  disappointment? 
His  departure  has  no  power  to  separate  Him  from 
them  in  the  deeper  and  more  real  sense,  but  links 
His  life  yet  closer  to  theirs.  As  He  thinks  for  them, 
loves  them,  leads  them,  and  fills  out  His  personal 
relation  to  them,  so  they  must  respond  to  Him  in 
thought  and  affection  and  will,  thus  completing 
those  deep  personal  bonds  of  fellowship  that  need 
never  be  vacated.  Again  and  again,  in  this  chapter. 
He  asks  them  to  believe  in  Him,  first  in  order  to 
clear  up  the  inner  atmosphere,  then  to  assure  their 
minds  once  more  that  He  is  related  to  the  Father 
in  the  unity  of  the  life  of  God ;  next  that  they  may 
do  the  works  He  does  and  even  greater  works  than 
these,  and  lastly  that  their  faith  may  be  strengthened 
as  a  result  of  His  thoughtful  interest  in  foretelling 
these  things,  a  future  effect  with  both  a  present 
and  a  future  cause.  As  He  opens  His  mind  and 
heart  to  His  disciples  they  can  only  respond  to  Him 
according  to  the  present  measure  of  their  own 
minds  and  the  present  devotion  of  their  own  hearts. 
Jesus   assumes   that   men   know   how   to   believe, 

250 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

even  if  they  are  not  able  to  define  faith  as  a  mental 
act  or  describe  it  as  a  personal  attitude.  Experience 
teaches  them  lessons  they  could  not  otherwise  learn, 
and  the  religious  teacher  must  rely  upon  human 
nature  as  adapted  to  his  message.  But  Christian 
faith  can  be  defined  in  terms  of  our  ordinary  think- 
ing. It  is  one  act,  which,  for  our  better  understand- 
ing, may  be  divided  into  three  parts :  First,  the  in- 
telligent perception  of  Christ  in  His  real  nature; 
second,  the  trustful  commitment  of  one's  self  to 
Him,  so  that,  by  our  own  free  choice,  our  life 
mingles  with  His  and  His  life  with  ours ;  third,  the 
complete  acceptance  of  Christ  in  mind  and  heart 
as  the  One  by  Whom  we  are  justified  and  sanctified 
and  even  glorified  in  anticipation.  The  word 
''faith"  gathers  up  in  itself  the  total  response  of 
man  to  that  appeal  of  God  which  we  call  His  saving 
grace. 

The  subject  of  the  fourteenth  chapter  calls  for 
private  discussion  rather  than  public  discourse.  The 
audience  must  be  Hmited  and  also  selected  in  order 
that  the  subject  may  be  developed  and  properly  ap- 
preciated. The  great  Teacher  always  speaks  with 
wise  reference  to  His  auditors.  He  never  fails  to 
bring  His  subject  within  their  mental  grasp.  But 
even  with  the  most  favorable  conditions  we  see  how 
slow  these  first  disciples  are  to  appreciate  the  sig- 
nificance of  the  Master's  words  because  they  are 
slow  to  enter  the  Master's  world.  If  only  they 
could  think  as  the  ]\Iaster  thinks,  in  conceptions 
cast  in  the  molds  of  His  mind,  in  terms  of  a  divine 
life  which  is  necessary  for  them  if  not  natural  to 

251 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

them,  and  in  the  logic  of  those  life-relations  that 
link  God  to  man,  they  would  rejoice  as  their  rela- 
tion to  the  Christ,  to  the  Father,  and  to  the  Com- 
forter is  set  forth  as  real  and  present  and  enduring. 
Students  they  are,  but  not  masters.  Still  must  they 
learn  from  the  lips  of  Jesus  before  they  can  teach 
or  even  rest  content  in  their  present  knowledge. 
The  trinitarian  teaching  of  Jesus  leaves  its  per- 
manent impression  on  our  minds  as  He  describes 
God  in  three  different  terms  and  shows  how  these 
three  Persons  touch  man  and  minister  to  him  in 
the  process  of  his  redemption.  God  is  enHsted  in 
the  totality  of  His  being,  since  nothing  less  could 
reach  the  result.  The  disciples  are  taught  to  dis- 
cover their  relation  to  God  at  every  point  of  ap- 
proach and  to  know  Him  as  the  Father,  Son,  and 
Holy  Spirit.  Their  Hfe  is  to  be  based  on  this  deep- 
est thought  of  God,  and  thus  this  deepest  doctrine 
of  the  Christian  system  becomes  the  most  practical 
because  it  is  the  most  personal. 

Jesus  invites  His  disciples  to  take  charge  of  their 
own  hearts  and  fix  once  for  all  the  object  of  their 
faith.  "Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled :  ye  believe 
in  God,  believe  also  in  Me."  You  can  put  trouble 
out  of  this  sanctuary  and  keep  it  out  by  this  one 
sovereign  remedy.  You  can  center  your  soul  upon 
Christ  and  God,  and  thus  clarify  its  atmosphere 
and  enable  it  to  realize  itself  in  its  inner  life  and 
in  its  spiritual  relations.  The  man  who  believes  in 
God  has  a  secure  basis  on  which  to  rest  his  reason 
and  his  will.  As  long  as  these  fundamental  rela- 
tions remain,  he  can  be  free  from  trouble  within. 

252 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

God  leads  an  untroubled  life,  and  Girist  is  God 
very  near  and  very  sympathetic  and  very  knowable. 
He  proposes  to  communicate  to  men  the  communi- 
cable elements  of  His  life,  so  that  a  man  can  be  in 
harmony  with  himself  because  he  is  in  harmony 
with  Christ,  the  Savior  of  men,  and  with  God,  the 
world-ground  as  the  metaphysician  would  say.  Surely 
there  can  be  no  better  way  to  come  into  harmony 
with  other  men  of  like  faith  and  practice  or  with 
the  progressive  and  providential  movements  of  his- 
tory, or  indeed  the  whole  universe  of  God.  Let  not 
your  heart  be  troubled  by  any  event  or  any  person, 
least  of  all  by  yourself.  You  are  the  divinely  ap- 
pointed guardian  of  the  charmed  circle  of  your  own 
inner  life,  which  should  be  divinely  peaceful  under 
the  supervision  of  the  soul  itself,  and,  above  all,  the 
protecting  care  of  God. 

Jesus  leaves  no  task  unfinished,  no  teaching  in- 
complete, no  doctrine  only  half  developed.  If  He 
proposes  peace  as  the  atmosphere  of  the  interior 
life,  He  proposes  peace  also  as  its  environment. 
He  goes  to  prepare  a  place  for  men  who  live  the 
divine  life  and  feel  out  of  place  where  they  are. 
His  proposition  has  behind  it  all  He  is  as  the 
Word,  the  Creator  of  all  things,  and  the  Associate 
of  God.  He  is  a  being  of  eternity  temporarily  abid- 
ing in  the  tent  of  time.  As  the  author  of  the  fourth 
Gospel  has  stated  in  the  most  positive  terms  that 
the  personal  existence  of  Christ  preceded  His 
earthly  life,  so  also  he  is  equally  positive  with  ref- 
erence to  Christ's  return  to  God  and  His  heavenly 
task  in  the  interest  of  His  earthly  disciples.    Christ 

253 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

is  not  less  than  consistent,  and  if  His  followers 
share  His  view,  their  hearts  will  harbor  no  anxiety 
because  of  His  departure.  If  the  immediate  pros- 
pect is  depressing,  the  distant  view  is  inspiring  in 
the  highest  degree.  They  are  to  follow  Him  into 
this  invisible  realm.  He  contemplates  no  permanent 
separation,  but  proposes  a  future  fellowship  that 
will  be  far  more  intimate  than  that  which  they  have 
here  enjoyed. 

His  disciples  cannot  conceive  how  they  can  come 
to  Him  in  His  heavenly  life  and  glory.  Their 
earthly  conceptions  of  life  and  being  still  control 
them,  and  so  Jesus  states  once  more  His  value  for 
the  human  spirit.  I  am  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the 
life.  In  His  own  Person  He  is  the  way  to  God 
just  as  He  is  the  truth  of  God  and  the  life  divine. 
His  relation  to  men  is  based  on  His  divine  and 
human  personality.  As  God  comes  to  men  in  Christ, 
men  come  to  God  in  Christ.  How  could  it  be  other- 
wise? Here  God  and  man  may  meet  on  friendly 
terms  and  in  friendly  converse.  The  knowledge  of 
Christ  is  the  knowledge  of  God,  and  seeing  Christ 
is  seeing  God.  The  divine  life  of  men  can  be  ex- 
plained only  in  terms  of  His  life  and  their  being  has 
its  reference  to  His  being.  Earthly  conceptions  fall 
short  of  spiritual  meanings  as  earthly  facts  fall 
short  of  spiritual  realities,  and  only  as  the  disciple 
rises  into  the  divine  life  can  he  fully  realize  that  his 
personal  relation  to  Christ  covers  the  question  un- 
der consideration. 

Thus  Jesus  is  vitally  related  to  His  disciples  on 
the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other  He  is  most  inti- 

254 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

mately  related  to  the  Father.  His  disciples  can 
know  this  unity  with  the  Father,  since  the  Father 
acts  in  and  through  Him.  His  words  and  works 
spring  from  the  Father  as  their  ultimate  source,  and 
hence  He  demands  faith  in  Himself  as  related  to 
the  Father  in  the  unity  and  fellowship  of  the  life 
of  God.  Let  the  believer  consider  also  that  he  shall 
do  the  same  and  even  greater  works  than  these  as 
a  direct  result  of  Christ's  complete  unity  with  the 
Father,  a  unity  which  really  re-enforces  His  power 
among  men.  Thus  the  works  of  the  believer  for- 
ever attest  the  unity  of  Christ  with  the  Father,  and 
at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  they  de- 
clare the  unity  of  the  Christian  and  the  Christ.  The 
believer  escapes  the  internal  dualism  of  seeking  to 
be  both  Christian  and  worldling  by  being  unified  in 
himself  and  unified  with  God  from  the  center  of  his 
being  and  throughout  the  various  forms  of  personal 
activity. 

With  this  understanding  of  Christ's  relation  to 
God  and  the  Christian's  relation  to  Christ,  the 
Christian  can  appreciate  the  encouraging  statement, 
''Whatsoever  ye  shall  ask  in  My  name,  that  will  I 
do,  that  the  Father  may  be  glorified  in  the  Son." 
Christ  answers  prayer  just  as  God  answers  it, 
bringing  satisfaction  to  the  suppliant  and  glory  to 
the  Father.  The  revelation  of  God  in  Christ  is 
complete  and  yet  continuous.  The  divine  appeal  to 
the  human  heart  never  ceases,  for  living  men  al- 
ways need  direct  manifestations  of  the  living  God 
as  the  starting  point  and  the  continual  stimulus  of 
their  higher  life. 

255 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

The  believer  approaches  Christ  in  prayer  with 
confidence  and  success.  He  discovers  that  love  be- 
comes a  possible  bond  of  union  and  the  only  real 
inspiration  of  obedience,  "If  ye  love  ?\Ie  ye  will 
keep  ]\Iy  commandments/'  Love  recognizes  Christ 
as  its  superior.  Love  cannot  disobey  Him.  The 
believer  who  attains  to  the  obedience  of  love  is 
thus  prepared  to  welcome  the  Comforter,  Who 
comes  in  answer  to  Christ's  prayer  to  the  Father. 
The  love  that  obeys  Christ  leads  on,  step  by  step, 
to  the  final  revelation  of  God  in  the  Holy  Spirit. 
He  comes  to  the  individual  believer  as  an  abiding 
presence,  an  indwelling,  consoling  presence,  as  the 
Spirit  of  truth,  so  welcome  to  the  honest,  earnest 
mind,  and  so  impossible  to  the  world,  which  fails 
to  cultivate  the  power  to  receive  Him  or  even  per- 
ceive His  presence.  Believers  know  Him  because 
He  abides  with  them  and  lives  in  them  as  an  essen- 
tial factor  in  their  spiritual  life. 

Jesus  assures  His  disciples  that  His  own  per- 
sonal relation  to  them  shall  continue  even  after  His 
visible  presence  is  withdrawn.  That  relation  will 
never  be  renounced  by  Him  or  silently  disowned. 
"I  will  not  leave  you  orphans ;  I  come  unto  you." 
When  His  visible  presence  is  withdrawn  from  the 
world,  His  disciples  still  behold  Him  and  still  live, 
not  as  a  mere  parallel  of  existence,  but  as  an  efifect 
of  causal  connection.  "Because  I  live  ye  shall  live 
also."  Their  life  is  still  dependent  on  His  and 
their  personal  relation  to  Him  remains  unbroken 
and  unimpaired. 

256 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

There  comes  a  day  when  His  disciples  will  have 
a  clearer  knowledge  of  their  relation  to  Christ,  and 
through  Him  to  God,  the  Father.  They  will  know 
that  Christ  is  in  the  Father,  that  Christians  are  in 
Christ,  and  that  Christ  is  in  Christians,  three  forms 
of  indwelling  no  one  of  which  can  be  lost  without 
breaking  this  wonderful  circle  of  life  and  this  beau- 
tiful bond  of  being.  Personal  experience  alone  can 
admit  men  to  the  meaning  of  these  three  relations 
which  are  mutually  explanatory  and  which  show 
how  men  are  drawn  close  to  God  by  internal  and 
spiritual  ties  that  are  not  subject  to  temporal  influ- 
ence. These  three  relations  belong  to  the  spiritual 
life  and  lie  at  the  very  basis  of  personal  religion  as 
taught  by  Jesus. 

The  man  who  demonstrates  his  love  for  Christ  by 
the  personal  possession  of  His  commandments  and 
by  keeping  them,  becomes  the  object  of  the  Father's 
love  as  well  as  the  love  of  Christ,  Who,  in  love,  will 
manifest  Himself  to  him.  Divine  love  makes  itself 
known  to  the  responsive  heart  and  leaves  its  own 
imprint  upon  the  soul,  as  the  sun  paints  in  silence 
every  opening  flower,  each  verdured  valley,  and 
each  wooded  hill.  The  obedient  Christian  receives 
personal  manifestations  of  the  Christ,  for  love  is 
an  expression  of  personality  on  both  sides  and  must 
always  have  a  person  as  its  object.  The  divine  life 
of  men  moves  on  the  personal  plane,  and  cannot 
be  interpreted  intelligently  on  any  lower  level.  Be- 
low the  plane  of  personal  experience  there  can  be 
no  knowing  subject  or  conscious  object,  and  hence 
the  supreme,  religious  relation  ceases  to  exist.  Per- 
257 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

sonality  of  the  Christian  type  is  self-conscious  and 
self-determining  in  the  highest  degree  as  it  realizes 
itself  in  the  kingdom  of  God. 

The  question  asked  by  Jude,  who  is  here  dis- 
tinguished from  the  traitor,  reveals  the  fact  that 
one  apostle,  at  least,  believes  that  Jesus  has  made  a 
palpable  change  of  front.  "What  is  come  to  pass 
that  Thou  wilt  manifest  Thyself  unto  us  and  not 
unto  the  world?"  With  Jude,  the  kingdom  of  God 
is  an  earthly  kingdom,  while  with  Jesus  it  is 
heavenly,  spiritual,  divine.  Men  are  always  slow  to 
cross  the  line  which  separates  the  two,  even  under 
the  leadership  of  our  Lord.  With  Jesus,  there  is 
only  one  question  here,  namely,  the  question  of  re- 
ceptivity. Love  to  God  invites  Him  to  come  in 
answer  to  it,  while  disobedience  or  lack  of  love 
closes  the  path  God  Himself  must  pursue  in  enter- 
ing the  human  heart.  Hence,  the  divine  life  of  men 
is  possible  only  when  men  make  it  possible  by  their 
own  response  to  the  divine  appeal.  The  rejection 
of  the  word  of  Jesus  is  the  rejection  of  the  Father's 
word  also,  and  there  remains  no  other  manifestation 
of  God  for  men  who  have  already  rejected  Him. 

One  more  truth  completes  our  Lord's  doctrine 
of  the  interior  life  of  the  believer.  'The  Com- 
forter, even  the  Holy  Spirit,  Whom  the  Father  will 
send  in  My  Name,  He  shall  teach  you  all  things, 
and  bring  to  your  remembrance  all  that  I  said  unto 
you."  They  are  not  to  fail  through  forgetfulness 
of  Christ's  teaching  nor  for  lack  of  further  instruc- 
tion. The  conditions  of  success  must  all  be  met. 
The  Holy  Spirit  is  sent  by  the  Father,  Who  sent  the 

258 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

Son;  He  will  teach  the  same  truth  that  Christ  has 
taught;  He  will  have  for  the  people  of  God  a  per- 
sonal presence  and  a  personal  work  to  do ;  He  can 
be  known  by  them  and  welcomed  as  a  Person ;  for 
the  divine  life  of  men  must  not  sink  below  the  per- 
sonal level  when  Jesus  departs  from  the  world,  but 
rather  rise  into  clearer  consciousness  and  move  more 
freely  in  the  unhindered  fellowship  and  under  the 
constant  direction  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

The  relation  of  Jesus  to  His  disciples  after  His 
final  departure  from  earth,  remains  constant  as  re- 
gards His  personal  interest  and  His  efficient  aid. 
The  Holy  Spirit  comes  in  His  Name  and  as  His 
representative,  as  well  as  the  representative  of  the 
Father.  And  now  He  leaves  His  peace  with  Hi"^ 
disciples  as  their  heritage  and  gives  His  peace  unto 
them  as  their  permanent  possession.  Worldly  pos- 
sessions slip  from  men's  grasp  slowly  perhaps  or 
even  suddenly,  but  His  peace  abides  in  the  hearts  of 
His  disciples  as  long  as  they  are  true  to  Him.  It  is 
a  perpetual  possession,  banishing  fear  and  trouble, 
those  two  internal  enemies  of  the  spiritual  life.  His 
immediate  as  well  as  His  final  departure  rightly 
understood  becomes  a  cause  for  rejoicing  on  the 
part  of  His  friends,  because  He  goes  to  the  Father, 
Who  is  greater  than  Himself,  and  thus  He  becomes 
the  one  Mediator  of  the  grace  of  God  to  His  dis- 
ciples and  to  all  mankind. 

Jesus  anticipates  history  in  order  to  aid  their 
faith.  He  states  His  reason  for  not  speaking  much 
with  His  disciples,  not  because  their  friendship  has 
suffered  a  sudden  chill,  not  because  of  their  failure 

259 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

to  respond  to  Him  as  they  should,  not  because  of 
unexpected  acts  on  the  part  of  His  enemies,  but 
simply  because  *'the  prince  of  the  world  cometh" 
in  order  to  assert  his  power  over  Christ,  in  Whom 
he  discovers  nothing  in  common  with  himself. 
Evil  must  have  its  opportunity  to  manifest  itself 
as  well  as  good,  unless  indeed  it  chooses  to  renounce 
itself  and  thus  changes  its  very  nature  by  faith 
in  Christ.  Neutrality  in  morals  and  religion  is 
evidently  unattainable.  Hence  the  Christ  pursues 
His  chosen  path,  beset  as  it  is  by  evil  men  and  by 
Satan  himself  in  order  that  the  world  may  know 
from  the  side  of  evil  as  well  as  its  opposite  that  He 
loves  the  Father  and  renders  to  Him  the  perfect 
obedience  of  love. 

Personal  religion  as  taught  by  Jesus,  or  the  divine 
life  of  men  within  the  radius  of  personal  experience, 
may  be  summed  up  in  the  personal  relation  of  Christ 
to  the  Christian  on  the  one  side  and  the  personal 
relation  of  the  Christian  to  the  Christ  on  the  other,  a 
twofold  relation  that  insures  the  Christian's  present 
peace  of  mind  as  well  as  his  future  place  of  peace 
and  happiness,  his  present  nearness  to  God  and 
knowledge  of  God,  his  free  access  to  God  by  prayer, 
his  personal  preparation  to  welcome  the  Holy  Spirit, 
his  desire  to  be  the  worthy  object  of  the  Father's 
love  as  well  as  the  love  of  Christ,  his  capacity  for 
the  instruction  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  Who  repreaches 
and  re-enforces  the  teachings  of  Jesus,  his  dispo- 
sition to  receive  Christ's  peace  instead  of  any 
worldly  substitute,  his  faith  in  Christ  as  the  suc- 
cessful opponent  of  evil  and  the  supreme  manifesta- 
260 


Personal  Religion  or  the  Divine  Life  of  Men 

tion  of  God  to  man.  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit 
are  shown  in  active  co-operation  with  the  believer 
in  the  process  of  constituting  and  also  interpreting 
his  life.  The  highest  Personality  touches  the  lower 
and  lifts  it  into  a  consciousness  of  divine  things  by 
bestowing  upon  it  a  divine  life.  Thus,  and  thus 
only,  can  men  obtain  and  then  maintain  true  con- 
ceptions of  the  real  aims  and  ends  of  existence. 
The  spiritual  life  of  men  cannot  drop  to  a  lower 
level.  It  is  essentially  personal.  The  Jew  traced 
his  relationship  to  God  through  Moses  and  the  law 
on  the  one  hand,  and  through  Abraham  and  phys- 
ical birth  on  the  other,  while  the  Christian  traces 
his  relationship  to  God,  the  Father,  through  Christ 
and  the  Holy  Spirit.  The  former  relationship  be- 
comes attenuated  and  unreal,  while  the  latter  is  non- 
exfstent  if  it  is  not  direct  and  personal. 

As  we  continue  to  meditate  upon  the  teaching  of 
Jesus  in  this  favorite  chapter,  we  are  constrained  to 
say,  "Never  man  spake  like  this  man,"  for  the 
simple  reason  that  we  are  constrained  to  believe  that 
no  man  ever  thought  like  this  man.  His  words 
fairly  reflect  His  thought  and  His  life.  They  never 
struggle  for  effect,  but  without  effort  shine  like 
''the  inviolable  stars.''  His  philosophy  finds  expres- 
sion in  clear  conceptions,  practical  principles,  and 
profound  spiritual  truths  formulated  in  the  most 
comprehensible  terms  and  organized  with  logical 
consistency.  He  answers  all  inquiries  in  order  to 
satisfy  human  reason  and  direct  the  human  will. 
His  theory  of  life  and  being  embraces  the  Center 
and  Source  of  all  being  and  all  life,  and  exhibits 

261 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospei 

the  relation  of  God  to  man  and  man  to  God  by 
means  of  the  Hfe  and  personality  of  one  great 
Mediator.  If  the  Master  appears  to  us  to  be  a 
mystic  as  He  discourses  on  the  divine  life  of  men 
as  an  inner,  personal  experience  and  a  present  re- 
ality, let  us  cheerfully  confess  that  He  is  still  the 
Master.  Let  us  own  with  profound  conviction  that 
His  is  the  only  mind  that  can  explore  the  mystic 
realm  of  the  heart  life,  completely  clarify  human 
thought,  reveal  the  lines  of  normal  development  for 
the  individual,  harmonize  intellect,  conscience,  and 
will,  and  in  short,  lay  the  foundation  for  an  interior 
life  that  is  worthy  of  man  as  its  agent  and  of  God 
as  its  original  author,  its  only  redeemer,  and  its 
ceaseless  associate.  The  conclusion  is  irresistibly 
borne  in  upon  us  that  personal  religion  as  taught 
by  Jesus  in  this  great  chapter  rings  true  to  man  ab 
morally  responsible  and  to  God  as  the  eternal 
Father. 


262 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency. 

Personal  religion,  as  taught  by  Jesus,  finds  its 
appropriate  field  of  activity  in  the  personal  service 
which  He  has  thus  inspired  and  then  commanded. 
Plowever  worthy  the  disciple  may  be  in  himself,  he 
does  not  exist  for  himself  alone,  but  also  for  others 
and  in  the  same  sense  that  he  exists  for  himself. 
Like  Christ,  he  seeks  to  interest,  inspire,  and  uplift 
men,  and  not  to  subjugate  or  exploit  them.  With 
friendly  interest  and  personal  appeal  he  points  them 
to  the  same  great  Source  of  life  which  he  has  found, 
and  offers  to  bestow  upon  them  the  best  his  life 
contains.  He  is  not  intent  on  gathering  about  him 
adherents  and  supporters,  but  seeks  to  establish 
that  relation  of  the  soul  to  Christ  which  is  the  basis 
of  the  noblest  manhood,  and  thus  to  hasten  the  com- 
ing of  the  kingdom  of  God.  He  lives  his  true  life, 
his  best,  his  complete  life,  only  when  he  acts  on  the 
principle  that  he  is  a  part  of  one  great  whole.  He 
sees  himself  among  believers  as  one  of  them,  and 
even  among  men  of  the  world  as  one  chosen  out  of 
the  world  and  yet  bearing  a  message  to  the  world. 
His  spiritual  life  described  in  the  fourteenth  chap- 
ter of  the  Gospel  of  John  prepares  him  for  the 
social  service  inspired  and  sustained  by  divine 
Agency,  which  we  find  so  fully  set  forth  in  the 
fifteenth  chapter. 

263 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Disciples  are  described  in  this  chapter  as  fruitful 
branches,  chosen  friends,  and  willing  witnesses. 
Their  relation  to  Christ  foreshadows  their  relation 
to  men,  and  the  former  governs  the  latter  in  all  the 
forms  it  may  rightfully  assume.  Their  individual- 
ity becomes  the  basis  of  their  ministry.  Branches 
they  are,  individually  dependent  on  the  Vine,  but 
never  fruitless  branches,  existing  for  themselves 
alone ;  friends  they  are  with  the  standing  of  friends, 
and  not  servants  who  know  not  the  Master's  mind ; 
witnesses  also  are  they,  witnesses  of  Christ,  and 
hence  they  are  not  men  of  the  world,  but  men  of 
the  kingdom  of  God,  representatives  of  the  new 
order  of  life  and  being.  As  they  are  inspired,  so 
also  are  they  sustained  by  Christ,  by  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  by  the  Father,  so  that  their  social  activity  in 
no  way  lessens  or  lowers  their  personal  religion, 
but  constantly  strengthens  and  perfects  it  by  its 
proper  exercise  and  its  appropriate  expression.  The 
true  Christian  mystic  ought,  therefore,  to  be  the 
true  Christian  minister,  because  he  keeps  in  vital 
relation  with  the  sources  of  spiritual  life.  On  the 
other  hand,  there  should  be  a  perceptible  deepening 
of  spiritual  life,  evidencing  a  closer  relation  to  the 
supreme  Source  of  spiritual  life  and  power  on  the 
part  of  every  active,  earnest  servant  of  God. 

Jesus  presents  the  religious  life  of  the  Christian 
as  it  appears  to  Him  in  one  rounded  whole.  In  the 
fourteenth  chapter  He  has  described  the  interior 
life  of  the  believer,  and  in  the  fifteenth  He  exhibits 
his  exterior  life,  if  we  may  use  the  expression. 
Here  we  see  the  disciple  among  men  as  the  repre- 

264 


Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency 

sentative  of  Christ,  first  seeking  to  save  and  serve 
them,  and,  second,  patiently  enduring  persecution 
at  their  hands  even  as  the  Master  did.  The  outer 
life  of  the  Christian  springs  from  his  inner  life  as 
naturally  and  effectively  as  the  branch  produces  the 
blossom  and  the  fruit.  The  disciple  is  a  living, 
growing,  fruitful  branch  of  the  true  Vine,  Whose 
life  he  freely  shares  and  Whose  support  he  con- 
tinually requires;  a  sincere  friend  of  the  divine 
Christ,  Whose  mind  and  heart  are  open  to  give 
to  him  and  to  receive  from  him ;  a  willing  witness 
to  the  truth  of  Christ's  claims  where  those  claims 
are  yet  unknown  or  where  they  are  still  rejected. 
As  the  representative  of  Christ,  he  will  be  hated  and 
hindered  by  men  who  cling  to  their  own  system  of 
thought  and  life,  but  he  will  be  aided  by  the  Spirit 
of  truth,  Who  always  has  a  mission  and  a  ministry 
among  men  and  Who  continues  His  benevolent 
activity  until  His  work  is  done. 

The  religious  life  of  the  disciple,  who  is  the  liv-'. 
ing   representative  of   Christ   among  men,  springs  > 
from  Christ  as  its   source,  claims   friendship   with  \ 
Christ   according  to   His   appointment,   and  enters   \ 
into  companionship  with  the  Comforter  according 
to   His   promise.     The  enemies  of   Christ   are   the 
enemies  of  the  Christian  life,  and  its  future,  near 
and  distant,   remains  securely  in  Christ's  keeping. 
In  short,  the  Christian's  relation  to  Christ  governs 
his  conduct  and  service  at  every  point  just  as  it  con- 
trols the  inner  motions  of  his  mind. 

Disciples  are  taught  in  this  fifteenth  chapter  to 
regard  Jesus   Christ   as   the  true   vine,   themselves 

265 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

as  the  branches,  and  the  Father  as  the  husbandman, 
Whose  personal  care  reaches  the  individual  branch, 
according  to  its  need.  As  branches,  they  are  taken 
right  into  this  living  relation  with  Christ  and  with 
the  Father.  Surely  they  should  be  keenly  conscious 
of  it ;  they  should  accept  it  knowingly  and  sincerely ; 
they  should  work  it  out  in  a  manner  that  shows 
faithfulness  and  intelligence.  This  relation,  so  es- 
sential to  fruitage  and  even  to  Christian  life  itself, 
may  be  dissolved,  its  continuance  being  conditioned 
on  the  fruitfulness  of  the  branches.  Unfruitful 
branches  lose  their  connection  with  Christ  by  their 
own  and  by  the  husbandman's  act,  and  thus  miss  the 
end  of  their  existence,  while  fruitful  branches  are 
cleansed  by  divine  agency  in  order  that  they  may 
become  yet  more  fruitful.  According  to  the  con- 
ception of  Christ,  the  Christian  must  be  an  active 
agent  among  men,  producing  effects  that  are  Chris- 
tian, that  demonstrate  discipleship,  and  that  glorify 
God  in  His  highest  manifestation  to  mankind. 

"He  that  abideth  in  Me,  and  I  in  him,  the  same 
beareth  much  fruit;  for  apart  from  Me  ye  can  do 
nothing."  Branches  become  fruitful  simply  by 
abiding  in  Christ  and  by  Christ  abiding  in  them. 
As  the  Vine,  He  vitalizes  them  and  gives  them  a 
single  nature.  They  are  made  clean  by  His  word, 
so  that  they  are  one  thing  and  not  two  or  twenty, 
mixed  in  confusion  or  even  in  conflict.  They  are 
really  Christian,  and  Christian  through  and  through, 
and  find  to  their  own  satisfaction  that  their  relation 
to  Christ  fills  out  their  life  to  the  point  of  fruitful- 
ness, the  point  of  perfection.  The  negative  state- 
266 


Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency 

ment  completes  His  thought  and  leaves  nothing  in 
doubt  or  dispute,  "the  branch  cannot  bear  fruit  of 
itself,"  "apart  from  Me  ye  can  do  nothing."     Evil 
combines   with   evil  to  produce   its   results.      Shall 
good  be  thus  attained  and  in  like  manner  issue  from 
a  finite  source?       Must  not  the  man  who  would 
serve  his  felbwman,  reverently  yet  really,  link  arms 
with  God?    is  not  this  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  Who 
knows  how  to  come  close  to  men  without  losing  hold 
of  God?    The  Christian  must  learn  Christ's  secret, 
and   never   part   company   with   Him   through   his 
anxious  efforts  to  seek  and  to  save  the  lost.     Per- 
haps there  are  Christian  men,  and  even  Christian 
ministers,  in  our  own  age,  who  have  placed  the  em- 
phasis on  the  wrong  relation.     Perhaps  there  are 
reUgious  teachers  to-day  who  need  Christ's  correc- 
tion in  view  of  this  very  error.    The  branch  extends 
from  the  vine  to  receive  the  ministration  of  air  and 
sunshine  and  rain,  but  if  it  fails  to  abide  in  the 
Vine  it  is  withered,  gathered  by  men,  cast  into  the 
fire  and  burned  as  the  inevitable  outcome  of  useless 
existence.     No  man,  unaided,  is  equal  to  the  task 
of  redeeming  a  single  soul.     The  life  he  seeks  to 
save    overpowers    him    and    his    judgment    follows 
quickly  in  the  footsteps  of  his  failure.     The  pro- 
fessing  Christian   who   lacks    the    divine   life   and 
the  support  of  divine  agency,  falls  an  easy  prey  to 
worldly  men  because  he  lacks  the  protection  of  God, 
where  that  protection  is  most  required. 

The    disciple    finds    in   his   personal    relation    to 
Christ  the  ample  basis  for  prayer  as  the  expression 
of   every   desire   that   harmonizes   with   the   divine 
267 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

methods  and  ends.  The  Christian  who  fails  to  pray 
and  receive  answer  to  prayer,  behes  his  profession 
and  misrepresents  his  Savior.  Fruitfulness  on  the 
part  of  disciples  honors  the  Father  as  the  supreme 
source  of  life  and  distinguishes  them  as  the  dis- 
ciples of  Christ.  As  disciples  they  are  saved  in 
order  to  their  own  well-being  and  also  in  prepara- 
tion for  active  service  in  some  field  of  Christian 
ministry.  They  are  saved  both  to  be  and  to  do, 
and  in  both  alike  to  glorify  God,  Who  saved  them, 
and  any  misapprehension  of  the  purpose  of  God 
must  rob  their  own  purpose  of  meaning  and  reality. 
Christians  maintain  their  right  relation  to  Christ 
by  keeping  His  commandments,  just  as  He  main- 
tains His  relation  to  the  Father  in  the  same  way. 
*Tf  ye  keep  My  commandments,  ye  shall  abide  in 
My  love ;  even  as  I  have  kept  My  Father's  com- 
mandments and  abide  in  His  love."  This  law  of 
right  life  in  the  spiritual  realm  appears  to  be  uni- 
versal in  its  application,  resembling,  in  this  respect, 
the  law  of  gravity  in  the  material  universe.  Hence 
we  naturally  infer  that  the  higher  life  of  men  must 
be  the  same  in  its  nature  as  the  perfect  human  life 
of  Christ.  Men  become  partakers  of  the  divine 
nature  as  a  divine  provision  and  a  human  privilege. 
The  Christ  and  the  Christian,  each  according  to  his 
own  measure  of  being,  lives  a  life  of  obedience, 
a  life  of  love,  a  life  of  personal  devotion  to  God. 
In  both,  love  is  that  supreme  personal  relation  that 
binds  God  to  man  and  man  to  God.  The  power  of 
love  is  not  exhausted  by  engaging  itself  to  a  superior 
Being,  but  only  strengthened  and  re-enforced  for 
268 


Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency 

its  task  of  holding  all  Christian  men  in  the  bonds 
of  brotherhood.  The  ministry  of  love  proceeds  in 
the  temple  of  God  and  among  Christian  people, 
from  Christian  to  Christian,  a  circulation  of  life 
which  is  as  real  and  as  important  as  the  circulation 
of  the  vital  fluid  in  the  body.  There  is  a  joy  in  the 
heart  of  Jesus  which  He  calls  His  own,  and  which 
He  desires  to  see  in  His  disciples,  because  He  en- 
ables them  to  realize  their  highest  hopes,  so  that  they 
have  a  joy  that  appears  to  be  all  their  own.  His  life 
fills  out  their  life  and  enables  them  to  be  their  best 
as  His  disciples  and  to  do  their  best  as  His  repre- 
sentatives in  the  Church  and  in  the  world. 

No  difference  of  opinion  and  no  doubtful  dispu- 
tation is  permitted  to  spring  up  concerning  Christ's 
commandment,  which  He  states  in  the  simplest 
terms.  'This  is  my  commandment,  that  ye  love  one 
another,  even  as  I  have  loved  you."  He  enjoins  dis- 
ciples to  love  each  other  as  the  prime  condition  of 
obedience  and  the  first  step  in  discipleship,  and  the 
standard  of  love  He  enjoins  is  set  by  Himself.  Men 
must  learn  to  measure  themselves  by  Him  and  not 
by  each  other.  They  must  learn  to  minister  to  each 
other  as  Christians  because  the  love  of  Christ  must 
not  stop  in  any  one  soul,  but  move  freely  to  others 
without  change  of  kind  or  reduction  of  quality. 
His  love  abides  unchanged  and  unexcelled,  and  so 
fixes  unchangeably  the  standard  of  Christian  love. 

And  now  He  is  able  to  declare  what  His  disciples 
are  better  able  to  understand.     "Ye  are  my  friends 
if  ye  do  the  things  which  I  command  you."    Obedi- 
ence becomes  the  basis  of  a  real  personal  associ- 
269 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

;uion.  The  very  thing  that  might  be  supposed 
to  subjugate  them  is  the  thing  that  hberates  them. 
Men  obey  other  men  with  the  result  that  they  are 
bound  by  that  obedience,  but  they  obey  God  with 
the  assurance  that  they  are  being  liberated  by  it. 
It  is  by  obedience  to  Christ  that  men  rise  to  His 
level  of  life  as  acquaintances,  associates,  and  trusted 
companions  in  life  and  service.  They  enjoy  the 
privilege  of  conversing  and  counseling  with  Him. 
They  know  His  teaching  and  even  His  mind  and 
heart,  and  can,  therefore,  enter  into  His  plans  and 
purposes.  They  are  no  longer  servants  in  His  esti- 
mation, and  should  not  be  in  their  own.  They 
should  show  personal  devotion  to  Him  and  intel- 
ligent initiative  in  His  service.  His  kindness  and 
His  candor  make  their  continual  appeal  to  His 
disciples  and  keep  them  open  to  that  perfect  Per- 
sonality Whose  sovereign  grace  it  is  to  claim  His 
obedient  servants  as  His  cherished  friends. 

With  His  intelligence  and  good  will,  with  His 
knowledge  of  them  and  love  for  them,  Jesus  chose 
His  disciples,  nor  did  they  first  choose  Him  or  even 
subsequently  choose  Him  with  equal  strength  of 
purpose  or  definiteness  of  knowledge.  As  He  places 
Himself  close  to  them,  His  superior  personality 
plainly  appears.  He  evidently  rises  above  them 
when  His  will  claims  them  by  definite  choice,  a 
fact  that  always  characterizes  His  relation  to  them. 
Their  response  to  Him  falls  far  below  the  action  of 
His  will  in  its  strength  and  constancy,  a  fact  which 
necessarily  conditions  this  divine  friendship.  They 
should  vindicate  His  choice  of  them  as  disciples  in 

270 


Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency 

three  ways :  They  should  be  active  as  disciples  ;  the  v 
should  bear  fruit  that  will  remain;  they  should 
constantly  receive  from  God  by  prayer.  Their  life 
as  His  chosen  friends,  must  be  social  as  well  as  in- 
dividual, its  very  worth  enlarging  its  field  of  action. 
Love  is  shown  to  be  the  principle  of  the  Chris- 
tian's social  life,  as  it  is  the  principle  of  his  indi- 
vidual life.  Of  course,  the  world  has  its  society  and 
loves  its  own  on  the  basis  of  its  own  being  and  ac- 
cording to  the  principles  of  its  own  activity.  It 
necessarily  hates  what  is  its  opposite,  not  only  its 
contrast,  but  also  its  contradiction.  Hence,  Chris- 
tians must  expect  to  share  with  Christ  this  hatred 
which  knows  neither  rest  nor  respite.  The  choice 
of  Jesus  has  changed  His  followers  from  one  realm 
of  being  and  life  to  a  totally  different  one,  in  which 
Christian  love  forever  reigns.  As  the  world  hated 
Christ,  so  it  will  hate  the  Christian  just  as  long  as 
it  is  the  world,  and  as  long  as  the  Christian  is  the 
true  follower  of  Christ.  They  are  irreconcilables 
in  everyday  life  as  well  as  in  abstract  doctrinal  dis- 
cussions. The  disciples  of  Christ  are  not  of  the 
world  in  spirit  or  aim  or  practice,  because  Christ 
has  taken  them  out  of  the  world  by  the  transform- 
ing power  of  His  own  choice.  They  must,  there- 
fore, expect  the  very  same  treatment  from  the  world 
that  He  received,  and  for  the  very  same  reason. 
His  coming  and  His  teaching  become  the  occasion 
of  sin  on  the  part  of  men  who  rejected  His  teaching 
and  Himself.  They  hate  Him,  and  in  doing  so 
they  hated  the  Father  also,  an  act  and  an  attitude 
of  mind  which  leads  to  a  personal  and  absolute  re- 
271 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

jection  of  God.  Yet  their  hatred  of  God  is  uncon- 
cealed and  without  excuse.  It  appears  in  the  light 
of  that  age  irrational,  self-centered,  sinful.  In  the 
face  of  evidence  such  as  had  no  parallel  in  history, 
they  maintained  their  attitude  of  opposition,  and 
thus  fulfilled  the  Scripture  statement,  'They  hated 
Me  without  a  cause." 

The  opposers  of  Jesus  stand  in  personal  oppo- 
sition to  Him  as  His  disciples  occupy  the  place  of 
personal  devotion  to  Him.  All  men  are  brought  to 
the  same  standard  of  life,  the  acceptance  or  rejec- 
tion of  Christ;  the  same  principle  of  action,  the 
love  of  Christ  or  the  reverse;  the  same  principle  of 
classification,  the  society  of  believers  commonly 
called  the  Church,  or  the  society  of  disbelievers 
commonly  called  the  world.  Thus  we  behold  Jesus 
at  the  very  center  of  our  social  life,  giving  to  it 
its  true  interpretation  and  showing  conclusively 
that  men  who  learn  life  from  Him  differ  radically 
from  men  who  learn  it  elsewhere. 

We  do  not  expect  Jesus  to  precipitate  a  conflict 
within  and  without  and  then  leave  His  disciples  to 
fight  the  double  battle  alone.  As  He  ofifers  His  aid 
in  the  interior  life,  so  also  He  provides  His  help 
for  the  exterior  life.  The  coming  Comforter  will  be 
their  constant  assistant  in  this  continuous  conflict. 
"When  the  Comforter  is  come,  Whom  I  will  send 
unto  you  from  the  Father,  even  the  spirit  of  truth, 
Who  proceedeth  from  the  Father,  He  shall  bear  wit- 
ness of  Me:  and  ye  also  bear  witness,  because  ye 
have  been  with  Me  from  the  beginning."  Their 
testimony  has  its  basis  in  their  own  personal  knowl- 
272 


Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency 

edge,  but  it  will  be  divinely  supported  and  supple- 
mented. There  will  still  be  an  active  Divine  Agent 
in  their  midst  and  in  close  personal  association  with 
them.  The  departure  of  Jesus  means  the  coming 
of  this  One  Whom  Jesus  sends,  and  Who  proceeds 
from  the  Father  with  full  power  and  authority.  He 
comes  as  the  Spirit  of  truth,  for  truth  is  essential 
in  the  social  order  as  well  as  in  individual  life.  He 
shall  bear  witness  of  Christ,  while  the  disciples  wit- 
ness in  concert  with  Him.  Their  testimony  will 
coincide  with  that  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  a  guiding 
principle  and  a  reassuring  fact  they  should  never 
forget  and  never  fail  to  realize. 

We  must  not  expect  our  Lord  to  anticipate  mod- 
ern methods  in  social  betterment,  with  the  various 
departments  of  work  and  the  corresponding  divi- 
sion of  labor,  but  we  can  see  that  He  lays  down  the 
principle  on  which  all  social  advancement  must  be 
made,  and  He  plainly  designates  the  one  great 
Agent  Who  presides  over  all  real  progress  in  reli- 
gious service  and  Who  inspires  all  real  religious 
efficiency.  Christian  missions,  evangelism,  and  ed- 
ucation require  His  presence  and  His  supremacy. 
Even  those  institutions  that  aim  to  ameliorate  the 
physical  conditions  of  men,  the  hospital,  the  orphan- 
age, and  the  social  settlement,  fail  to  attain  their 
full  measure  of  usefulness  without  the  presiding 
presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  No  organized  body 
of  Christian  workers  can  safely  sever  their  relation 
to  Christ  or  set  aside  the  principle  He  has  supplied. 
Even  Christian  civilization  is  not  an  independent 
thing  that  can  endure  apart  from  Christ,  but,  as 

273 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

history  has  often  proved,  begins  to  wither  and  die 
when  severed  from  its  Source. 

Thus  the  divine  sustains  the  human  at  every  point 
in  Christian  ministry.  Christ  is  always  theistic  and 
never  deistic  in  His  teaching.  The  divine  life  of 
men  issues  in  Christian  ministry  as  opportunity 
offers,  and  in  the  rejection  of  evil  and  error  as 
occasion  demands.  The  disciples  of  Jesus  are  not 
social  ciphers,  not  isolated  individuals,  but  persons 
in  the  Christian  sense,  living  and  laboring  among 
men  for  their  moral  and  spiritual  betterment.  They 
are  active  agents,  intelligent  and  constructive. 
Christian  personality  necessarily  has  its  social  as 
well  as  its  individual  development.  It  has  its  prin- 
ciples of  social  action  as  here  stated,  and  its  social 
ideals  as  here  defined,  both  of  which  are  Christian 
contributions  to  human  knowledge  and  life,  and 
plainly  attest  their  origin  by  their  effects.  The 
religious  life  of  men  must  be  fruitful  in  order  to 
attain  its  complete  development  and  in  order  to  per- 
petuate its  own  existence  among  men  by  bestowing 
upon  them  its  own  essential  worth.  Love  moves 
the  Christian  even  as  it  moves  the  Christ,  yet  the 
Christian  must  ever  remember  that  "a  servant  is 
not  greater  than  his  lord."  The  uplifting  friend- 
ship of  Christ  and  the  sanctifying  fellowship  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  will  not  save  him  from  persecution,  but 
will  win  for  him  a  sincere  welcome  wherever  Christ 
Himself  has  been  received.  The  divine  life  of  the 
Christian  is  thus  demonstrated  to  be  really  divine 
in  its  relation  to  God,  and  in  its  separation  from  the 
world;  in  its  devotion  to  Christ  and  in  its  ministry 

274 


Social  Service  Sustained  by  Divine  Agency 

to  men;  in  its  individual  quality  and  in  its  social 
activity ;  in  short,  in  all  that  constitutes  Christian 
personality,  a  worthy  response  to  the  divine  appeal 
through  Christ  and  the  Holy  Spirit. 

Such  is  the  social  ministry  of  the  disciple  of  Je- 
sus, as  set  forth  in  the  fifteenth  chapter  of  John's 
Gospel,  a  ministry  instituted,  inspired,  and  sustained 
by  God,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit, 
Whom  His  redeemed  rejoice  to  know  as  God,  ab- 
solute, revealed,  and  ever  present.  Deity  in  the 
trinitarian  sense  supports  the  man  who  ministers  to 
men  as  the  representative  of  Christ.  Such  is  the 
teaching  of  our  Lord  as  He  displays  the  operation 
of  the  agencies  appointed  for  social  betterment.  As 
the  divine  element  enters  individual  life,  so  must 
it  enter  the  social  life  in  order  to  its  redemption, 
and  God  alone  as  Jesus  Christ  reveals  Him  to  men, 
is  a  cause  equal  to  such  an  effect.  Trinitarian 
teaching  has  triumphantly  won  its  way  in  social 
service  and  has  easily  outstripped  all  other  systems 
of  doctrine  which  inculcate  a  lower  conception  of 
God. 


275 


CHAPTER  XXL 

Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual  and 
FOR  Society. 

Having  described  the  disciple  in  terms  of  per- 
sonal life  and  religion,  and  having  portrayed  him  in 
his  social  life  and  relations,  especially  in  the  midst 
of  his  own  kind,  Jesus  next  completes  his  descrip- 
tion by  presenting  the  disciple  in  his  relation  to  an 
opposing  world.  The  opposition  of  the  world  will 
issue  in  an  open  conflict  which  evidently  aims  at 
the  subjugation  or  even  the  destruction  of  the  dis- 
ciple. "They  shall  put  you  out  of  the  synagogues : 
yea,  the  hour  cometh,  that  whosoever  killeth  you 
shall  think  that  he  offereth  service  to  God."  The 
world  has  its  standard  of  sin  as  well  as  the  Church, 
however  contradictory  that  standard  may  be,  incon- 
sistent with  the  ten  commandments,  or  at  variance 
with  conscience,  and  we  must  expect  the  world  to 
use  its  power  to  enforce  its  idea. 

It  becomes  increasingly  apparent  that  Jesus  is 
never  disappointing  to  earnest  minds.  Whichever 
way  He  faces,  He  seems  the  same.  He  looks  into 
the  individual  heart  and  life  with  perfect  knowledge 
of  their  contents,  and  so  also  He  looks  into  the  un- 
written history  of  the  future  with  its  conflicting 
agencies  and  its  diversified  interests.  He  estimates 
the  outcome  not  only  by  means  of  the  principles 
that  must  govern  action,  but  also  by  an  immediate 
knowledge  which  is  more  than  prophetic.    He  sees 

276 


spiritual  Leadership  f  oil  the  Individual 

what  the  future  holds  in  store  for  His  disciples,  and 
provides  a  spiritual  Leadership  that  will  meet  every 
emergency. 

The  development  of  the  divine  life  of  men  pro- 
ceeds in  spite  of  the  opposition  of  enemies.  That 
opposition  accentuates  the  need  of  spiritual  leader- 
ship and  also  the  reality  of  personal  rehgion.  It 
will  be  met  by  the  effective  assistance  of  the  Com- 
forter, the  Spirit  of  truth,  Who  continues  the  teach- 
ing and  the  leadership  of  Christ.  As  Augustine  has 
said,  ''When  Christ  came  forth  from  the  Father, 
He  so  came  into  the  world  as  never  to  leave  the 
Father;  and  He  so  left  the  world  and  went  unto 
the  Father  as  never  to  leave  the  world."  The  Father 
and  the  Son  never  abandon  the  scene,  but  work 
in  and  through  the  Spirit  for  the  establishment  of 
the  kingdom  of  God.  H  the  disciples  find  enemies 
and  opposers  in  the  synagogues  and  among  the 
professed  worshipers  of  God,  they  also  discover  a 
sympathetic  Associate,  Who  is  ever  near  and  a 
mighty  Helper,  Who  convicts  the  world  of  sin, 
and  Who  guides  the  followers  of  Jesus  into  all 
truth. 

The  evil  treatment  disciples  must  expect  from 
men  has  its  adequate  explanation  and  its  sufficient 
cause  in  the  religious  ignorance  of  their  persecu- 
tors, who,  as  Jesus  declares,  "have  not  known  the 
Father  nor  Me."  They  are  differently  centered. 
Their  theory  of  religion  excludes  Christ.  Hence 
they  cannot  be  expected  to  be  passive  in  presence  of 
Christian  men.  They  are  active  in  their  opposition, 
and  in  kindness  Jesus  forewarns  His  disciples.  Who 
277 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

could  not  anticipate  it  or  measure  the  bitterness  that 
would  expel  them  from  the  synagogues  and  even 
compass  their  death  as  a  service  rendered  to  God. 
History  must  be  rewritten  at  cost  of  His  life  and 
theirs.  He  states  the  fact  and  the  cause  of  perse- 
cution, that  when  it  comes  to  pass  they  may  have 
the  explanation  at  hand.  He  told  them  no  sooner 
because  He  was  with  them  and  was  willing  to  carry 
for  them  the  burden  of  this  unwelcome  knowledge 
as  long  as  He  could. 

His  return  to  the  Father,  Who  sent  Him  into  the 
world,  calls  forth  no  inquiry  or  even  comment  from 
any  one  of  His  disciples.  They  are  evidently  not 
looking  into  His  life,  nor  are  they  estimating  the 
meaning  of  His  return  to  God.  Their  minds  are 
limited  by  an  earthly  horizon.  Spiritual  vision  and 
spiritual  knowledge  must  be  dim  and  contracted,  if 
not  almost  lacking.  Their  sorrow  has  quite  over- 
come them.  Their  eyes  have  a  fixed  gaze.  They 
are  looking  at  their  future  as  though  Christ  were 
lost  to  it  and  that  soon  they  would  be  deprived  of 
His  leadership.  Such  is  not  the  proper  attitude  of 
mind  nor  the  real  outlook  before  them,  as  He 
plainly  proves  in  the  remaining  part  of  the  chapter. 

If  His  departure  brings  soul-sorrow  to  His  dis- 
ciples, it  brings  also  soul- joy,  because  it  brings  the 
Comforter,  Who  convicts  the  world  of  sin.  Who 
guides  disciples  into  all  truth,  Who  declares  to  them 
the  things  to  come.  Who  glorifies  Christ.  The  good 
agencies  are  active  as  well  as  the  evil  after  XThrist's 
departure.  Evil  has  its  place  and  acts  its  part,  and 
good  seizes  its  opportunity  and  exercises  its  influ- 

278 


Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual 

ence.  Surely  they  can  now  accept  the  departure 
of  Jesus  as  being  expedient  for  them  in  view  of  the 
spiritual  results  that  flow  therefrom.  Nothing  at  all 
is  lost  and  very  much  is  gained.  Christ  is  not  lost 
to  them,  and  they  still  have  a  divine  Leader  and  a 
divine  Associate,  real  though  spiritual  in  presence 
and  power,  and  without  Whom  spiritual  life  would 
be  impossible  under  any  conditions.  A  divine  Pres- 
ence will  attend  them,  Who  is  not  subject  to  death, 
like  Jesus,  nor  limited  by  bodily  form,  but  Who 
abides  with  them  in  their  social  and  individual  life 
with  an  unhindered  and  an  uninterrupted  fellow- 
ship. He  enters  the  great  work  of  human  redemp- 
tion which  Jesus  has  undertaken,  and  His  work  fol- 
lows that  of  the  Christ  in  a  threefold  ministry :  He 
serves  the  world  by  convicting  it  of  sin ;  He  serves 
the  Christian  by  affording  him  spiritual  leadership ; 
He  serves  Jesus  Christ  as  the  head  of  the  race  and 
the  representative  of  God  by  repreaching  His  doc- 
trine wherever  it  is  required  and  by  interpreting 
His  life  wherever  it  has  found  welcome.  In  His 
perpetual  ministry  He  glorifies  Christ,  in  Whom 
men  are  enabled  to  see  the  unity  of  the  divine  plan 
and  purpose,  which  unfolds  in  wisdom  and  love, 
ever  revealing  broader  lines  of  development  and 
deeper  significance  of  salvation. 

The  teaching  of  Jesus  never  narrows  down  into 
ordinary  human  limits,  nor  does  His  leadership  ever 
end  in  a  blind  alley.  Both  widen  in  prospect  and 
deepen  in  purpose,  and  thus  demand  all  there  is  in 
man  to  comprehend  them,  all  his  intellect,  and  all 
his  affection,  and  all  his  will,  all  there  is  of  each 

279 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

man,  and  all  there  is  of  all  combined.  Wherever 
any  man  falls  short  in  his  acceptance  of  Christ, 
he  will  ask  questions  such  as  the  disciples  asked. 
"What  is  this  that  He  saith  unto  us,  A  little  while 
and  ye  behold  Me  not ;  and  again  a  little  while,  and 
ye  shall  see  Me :  and,  Because  I  go  to  the  Father  ?" 
The  explanation  is  contained  in  what  He  had  al- 
ready taught  them,  but  not  in  what  they  had  already 
learned.  His  death  will,  indeed,  take  Him  from 
His  disciples  for  a  little  while,  but  the  time  lost  to 
them  here  will  be  spent  there  in  the  presence  of  the 
Father  as  their  Savior  and  their  Intercessor.  His 
resurrection  will  bring  Him  back  to  them  with  the 
assurance  that  His  sacrifice  for  sin  avails  with  God. 
This  is  and  has  been  His  teaching  from  the  very 
first,  the  teaching  which  He  now  illustrates  in  this 
unmistakable  way.  Their  sorrow  has  its  cause, 
namely,  His  death  and  departure,  but  they  shall 
have  joy  also  which  has  its  cause,  namely.  His  re- 
turn to  them.  The  travailing  woman  becomes  the 
joyful  mother.  She  rejoices  in  a  new  relation  of  life 
the  very  moment  she  rejoices  over  a  new  life.  She 
has  enriched  herself  and  others  in  duty  and  devo- 
tion, in  sacrifice  and  service.  So,  also,  these  first 
disciples  shall  rejoice  in  the  very  results  and  out- 
come of  their  sorrow.  They  shall  realize  a  new 
spiritual  life  and  relationship  which  are  full  of  joy, 
a  joy  that  no  one  can  take  away  from  them.  And 
in  that  day,  so  different  from  this,  "ye  shall  ask  Me 
no  question,"  because  you  will  know,  and  because 
you  will  have  learned  to  interpret.  Then  you  will 
pray  to  the  Father  and  receive  from  Him  in  the 

280 


Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual 

name  of  Christ.  Your  relation  to  God  will  then  be 
immediate  and  personal,  being  continually  demon- 
strated in  your  thought  and  experience.  Prayer  is 
more  than  intelligent  inquiry,  more  than  earnest  de- 
sire, more  than  sincere  purpose.  It  is  man  in  the 
totality  of  his  being  making  his  appeal  to  God,  as 
God,  intelligent,  merciful,  and  mighty,  as  related  to 
man  and  interested  in  him  according  to  the  measure 
of  deity.  Such  human  appeal  brings  its  appropriate 
divine  response,  by  which  human  need  is  satisfied 
and  the  spirit  is  filled  to  its  completion.  His  whole 
being  becomes  vital  with  divine  life.  Co-operation 
with  God  is  neither  impossible  nor  unreal.  His 
joy  is  full,  for  his  life  is  filled  with  the  best  life  and 
all  of  life  it  can  contain. 

Jesus  has  spoken  to  His  disciples  in  what  appears 
to  them  dark  sayings,  because  they  have  not  yet 
touched  the  center  or  grasped  the  outlines  of  His 
teaching,  but  He  foretells  a  well-marked  hour  when 
He  shall  speak  to  them  in  plain  terms,  revealing 
the  Father  and  their  relation  to  Him,  a  relation  they 
can  know  and  appreciate,  a  relation  which  they 
should  esteem  supreme,  illuminating  and  explain- 
ing all  others.  Even  the  prayer  of  Jesus  will  not 
be  required  to  insure  the  answer  to  their  prayer 
which  springs  from  this  existing  relation,  "for  the 
Father  Himself  loveth  you  because  ye  have  loved 
Me,  and  have  believed  that  I  came  forth  from  the 
Father."  The  Father's  love  becomes  the  basis  for 
their  prayer  on  the  divine  side  and  their  faith  in 
Christ  on  the  human  side.  They  have  believed  that 
He  came  out  from  the  Father,  that  He  entered  the 

281 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

world  and  human  history,  that  He  returns  to  the 
Father,  three  specific  articles  of  their  future  faith. 
The  disciples  at  once  assure  Him  that  His  speech 
seems  plain  to  them  now  and  that  their  faith  in  Him 
is  firmly  established,  but  their  glowing  report  of 
their  mental  state  cannot  be  accepted  by  the  Master. 
Strange  as  it  may  seem,  their  faith  will  fail  once 
more,  at  least  temporarily.  Their  knowledge  of 
themselves  is  still  sadly  defective  and  needs  con- 
tinual correction.  ^'Behold,  the  hour  cometh,  yea, 
is  come  that  ye  shall  be  scattered,  every  man  to  his 
own,  and  shall  leave  Me  alone:  and  yet  I  am  not 
alone,  because  the  Father  is  with  Ale;"  scattered  to 
their  own  as  though  their  life  centered  there;  scat- 
tered from  Him  as  though  no  ties  existed,  no  invis- 
ible bonds  of  faith  and  hope  and  love  bound  them  to 
Him ;  scattered  from  each  other  only  to  be  brought 
together  again  by  a  spiritual  leadership  that  will 
unite  them  and  guide  them  and  govern  them  hence- 
forth. Now  they  are  scattered  and  He  is  left  alone 
so  far  as  human  aid  and  human  association  is  con- 
cerned. He  must  tread  the  wine-press  alone  and 
demonstrate  once  more  His  racial  relation  to  men 
and  his  personal  relation  to  the  Father.  God  alone 
can  abide  with  Him,  and  He  alone  of  all  men  can 
abide  with  God  in  perfect  love  and  obedience.  Evil 
agencies  in  combination  cannot  destroy  the  relations 
of  His  life  or  dissolve  the  union  of  His  deity  and 
His  humanity.  Alone  in  conflict  with  evil,  alone,  as 
man's  representative  head,  alone,  save  for  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Father,  alone,  yet  one  with  God  and 
man.     No  confusion  of  ideas  troubles  us  here  and 

282 


Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual 

no  fear  that  we  may  be  the  victims  of  cunningly 
devised  fables.  Surely  no  man,  however  willing 
and  capable,  could  ever  anticipate  the  teaching  of 
Jesus  or  easily  follow  His  thought.  He  thinks  for 
a  race  as  well  as  an  individual,  and  hence  His  con- 
ceptions transcend  His  disciples'  present  power  of 
apprehension.  But  they  will  know,  they  will  under- 
stand, they  will  appreciate  His  wonderful  words 
and  His  mighty  deeds. 

Closer  still  comes  the  personal  assurance,  '4n  Me 
ye  shall  have  peace,"  even  as  it  has  been  so  it  will 
be,  and  the  adverse  fact,  unwelcome  but  not  to  be 
unknown,  "in  the  world  ye  shall  have  tribulation," 
then  those  last  reassuring  words,  instinct  with  com- 
fort and  courage,  "be  of  good  cheer;  I  have  over- 
come the  world."  The  massing  of  evil  against 
Christ  issues  in  its  own  defeat,  for  Christ  has  al- 
ready conquered.  Who  can  question  His  victory? 
Who  can  doubt  this  one  fact,  at  least,  which  comes 
within  the  scope  of  human  knowledge  and  human 
experience,  that  Christ  has  overcome  the  world? 
Its  aims  and  ideals  and  activities  have  not  delighted 
or  deluded  Him,  but  in  the  very  presence  of  them 
all  He  has  demonstrated  His  devotion  to  the  divine 
image  in  man  and  the  divine  plan  for  human  life. 
In  Himself  He  consecrates  human  personality  as 
divine  in  its  first  creation,  in  its  free  choices,  and 
in  its  supreme  relations. 

Thus  Jesus  unfolds  to  His  disciple  and  all  men 
His  thought  of  the  divine  life  of  men  in  its  proper 
development  under  the  leadership  of  the  Spirit. 
His  doctrine.  His  service,  and  His  human  person- 

283 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

ality  reveal  the  rich  contents  and  the  splendid  lines 
of  spiritual  manhood.  Concealed  and  avowed  ene- 
mies of  this  life  will  always  be  found  among  men, 
and  even  men  who  are  formally  religious  will  man- 
ifest .  active  opposition,  but  there  will  always  be  a 
divine  Helper  Who  makes  it  possible  for  the  dis- 
ciple to  live  among  men  as  Jesus  directs,  and  espe- 
cially within  the  sacred  precincts  of  the  soul  itself. 
The  presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  should  be  welcomed 
by  the  disciples  as  the  next  movement  in  the  divine 
order  of  revelation  and  redemption,  taking  the  place 
of  the  visible  presence  of  Christ  and  offering  God's 
final  answer  to  this  universal  need  of  men.  If 
men  are  sinners.  He  convicts  them  of  sin;  if  they 
are  saved.  He  comforts  and  sustains  them  in  obedi- 
ence. Like  Christ,  He  is  related  to  all  souls,  for 
like  Christ,  He  is  God.  He  glorifies  Christ,  His 
humanity  and  His  deity,  by  showing  both  to  men  in 
their  essential  worth  and  their  relative  value. 
Christ  is  God  manifested  to  men  in  human  per- 
sonality and  life.  The  Holy  Spirit  is  God  mani- 
fested to  men  in  invisible  and  spiritual  presence. 
His  divine  agency  and  divine  character  are  as 
real  to  men  as  their  answering  natures  can  con- 
ceive. He  is  real  to  a  sinner  by  condemnation  of 
his  sin,  and  He  is  real  to  a  saint  by  sustaining  him 
in  his  obedience  to  God. 

According  to  a  recent  statement  of  Arthur  S. 
Hoyt,  "Protestantism  means  trust  in  a  living  Spirit 
to  interpret  the  facts  of  historic  Christianity  and  the 
growing  life  of  the  race.  It  means  a  religion  of  the 
Spirit,  and  not  a  religion  of  merely  outward  au- 
284 


Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual 

thority."  As  thus  defined,  the  meaning  of  Prot- 
estantism completely  coincides  with  the  teaching 
of  the  fourth  Gospel,  a  splendid  reproduction  of 
the  Master's  mind  in  the  conception  of  great  reli- 
gious leaders  and  in  the  course  of  human  history. 
Protestantism  presents  the  sublime  spectacle  of  hu- 
manity welcoming  anew  the  revelation  of  God  in 
Jesus  Christ  and  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  Great  leaders 
arise  and  shine,  and  even  great  multitudes  are  illu- 
minated with  the  radiance  of  spiritual  light,  as  per- 
sonal religion  had  shone  with  isolated  and  sub- 
dued brightness  in  the  middle  age. 

Personal  religion  and  the  corresponding  social 
service  exist  in  every  age,  a  sufficient  evidence  of 
the  presence  of  the  Spirit,  yet  both  are  likely  to  be 
limited  by  the  prevailing  ideas  and  influences  of 
age  and  nation.  Perfect  spiritual  freedom  has  sel- 
dom been  declared.  The  divine  character  of  reli- 
gious life  and  its  divine  development  have  seldom 
been  realized.  Strange  to  say,  Jesus  is  not  the  only 
teacher  even  Christian  men  are  accustomed  to  rec- 
ognize, nor  is  the  Holy  Spirit  the  only  spiritual 
leader.  The  first  commandment.  Thou  shalt  love 
the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  soul,  mind,  and 
strength,  is  not  couched  in  rhetorical  language,  but 
rather  in  the  accurate,  scientific  terms  adapted  to 
the  careful  statement  of  an  essential  truth  of  the 
law  and  the  gospel,  an  unbroken  strand  that  runs 
through  revelation  from  end  to  end  and  a  plain 
principle  that  underlies  all  mental  action.  The 
partial  acceptance  of  Christ  has  not  the  same  eflfect 
as  the  complete  and  perfect  acceptance  of  Him  as 
285 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

the  Son  of  God  and  the  Savior  of  the  world.  The 
complete  acceptance  of  Christ  prepares  the  soul  to 
accept  the  Holy  Spirit  as  the  soul  of  our  soul, 
changes  the  very  atmosphere  we  breathe,  the  earth 
we  tread,  the  heaven  we  seek,  because  it  changes 
the  life  we  live,  making  the  human  life  truly  divine, 
divine  in  its  joys  and  hope,  its  faith  and  life,  its 
aims  and  ideals,  its  companionships  and  its  min- 
istries, its  law  and  its  leadership. 

In  recent  years  the  Christian  Church  has  felt  the 
devitalizing  influence  of  modern  materialism  and 
the  attendant  worldliness  which  has  crept  in  with 
stealthy  step.  It  is  easier  to  rob  the  Church  of  its 
power  than  to  resist  it  successfully.  It  is  easier  to 
revamp  the  old  doctrines  and  offer  them  as  the  last 
expression  of  ''advanced  thought"  than  to  disprove 
those  doctrines  or  even  to  obey  them.  It  is  easier 
to  use  the  language  of  orthodoxy  with  a  different 
meaning  than  to  combat  the  sturdy  truth  that  has 
commanded  the  minds  of  men  for  centuries.  Ma- 
terialism, like  every  other  form  of  skepticism  is 
retrogressive  and  reactionary.  It  is  the  contradic- 
tion of  Christianity  and  seeks  to  eliminate  the  very 
essence  of  Christianity  as  a  spiritual  religion.  What 
a  corrective  for  such  tendencies  do  we  find  in  the 
fourth  Gospel!  What  a  splendid  refutation  of  the 
very  basis  on  which  they  are  built ! 

The  world  has  no  conflict  with  the  worldly 
Church,  for  the  worldly  Church  cannot  convince  ii 
of  sin  and  righteousness  and  judgment  to  come. 
The  worldly  Church  does  not  possess  the  power  of 
the  Spirit  nor  does  it  enjoy  the  leadership  of  the 

286 


Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual 

Spirit.  It  must  rest  back  upon  divine  providence 
which  shapes  our  ends,  rough  hew  them  as  we  will. 
It  must  be  content  to  represent  Christianity  as  one 
of  the  religions  of  the  world  and  not  undertake  to 
demonstrate  that  it  is  the  one  supreme  religion, 
separate  from  all  others  in  its  divine  character  and 
power,  and  finally  answering  every  need  of  the 
human  spirit,  here  and  hereafter. 

Do  we  properly  appreciate  the  spiritual  leader- 
ship which  Jesus  provided  and  so  freely  offers  to 
the  individual  and  the  Church,  a  leadership  which 
He  cultivates  in  His  own  life  and  continues  by 
sending  the  Holy  Spirit,  a  leadership  that  is  safe 
and  sane,  that  lifts  and  liberates,  that  always  bears 
the  stamp  of  deity  upon  it?  Shall  our  practical 
deism  cheat  us  out  of  our  essential  Christianity  as 
soon  as  Christ  takes  His  departure?  Shall  not  the 
divine  life  of  men  continue  to  be  divine  by  con- 
tinual accessions  of  the  divine  and  continual  co- 
operation with  God?  If,  indeed,  Jesus  Christ  is 
the  Son  of  God,  we  must  expect  Him  to  lift  men 
up  into  the  spiritual  life  He  describes,  enabling  them 
to  realize  it  in  its  inner  content  and  in  its  outer  re- 
lations, in  its  internal  and  external  activities,  in  its 
influence  and  development  under  the  direction  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  do  all  this  in  spite  of  the  inter- 
ference and  opposition  of  evil.  His  leadership  must 
be  trustworthy  in  presence  of  enemies  and  in 
prospect  of  the  future,  seen  and  unseen.  His  eye 
easily  surveys  human  life  from  center  to  circum- 
ference ;  His  mind  comprehends  the  mind  of  man 
and   the   mind  of  God ;   His   heart  overflows   with 

287 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

divine  love  as  it  bestows  its  divine  life  upon  men 
and  teaches  them  its  own  divine  art.  Jesus  is  man 
beside  us,  but  He  is  also  God  above  us.  God  is  a 
Spirit,  and  so  also  is  Jesus  Christ,  Who  wins  men 
to  spiritual  life  and  prepares  them  to  respond  to 
spiritual  leadership. 

Perhaps  there  are  individual  Christians  or  even 
whole  companies  of  them,  who,  like  these  first  dis- 
ciples, are  filled  with  sorrow  by  the  departure  of 
Christ,  the  only  Christ  they  ever  knew.  The  his- 
toric Christ  is  gone  as  He  said  He  would  go,  but 
the  spiritual  Christ  has  not  come  to  them  as  He 
promised  to  do.  They  linger  about  the  manger  and 
the  cross  and  the  empty  tomb,  and  scarcely  hear  the 
angel  say,  He  is  not  here.  They  discredit  the  spir- 
ituality of  Christ  and  in  so  doing  discredit  the  spirit- 
uality of  the  Christian.  They  know  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  but  they  do  not  know  Him  as  their  spiritual 
Leader.  They  have  not  grasped  the  full  signif- 
icance of  the  well-known  hymn, 

'T  worship  Thee,  O  Holy  Ghost, 
I  love  to  worship  Thee. 
My  risen  Lord  for  aye  were  lost 
But  for  Thy  company." 

As  Christian,  how  dare  we  limit  the  divine  life 
within  us?  How  dare  we  accept  Jesus  as  our 
Savior  and  also  as  our  Lord,  and  then  refuse  to 
receive  the  Holy  Spirit  as  our  Leader  in  individual 
life  and  social  service?  Only  as  spiritual  beings 
can  we  belong  to  the  kingdom  of  God.  Flesh  and 
288 


Spiritual  Leadership  for  the  Individual 

blood,  with  all  its  pomp  and  circumstance,  cannot 
enter  there.  Perhaps  there  is  still  a  scattering  of 
disciples,  every  man  to  his  own,  and  perhaps  there 
must  be  until  disciples  are  united  by  those  bonds 
that  are  spiritual,  that  life  that  is  eternal,  that  lead- 
ership that  cannot  be  overcome  by  evil  or  dissolved 
by  death. 


289 


CHAPTER  XXIL 

The  Prayer  of  Jesus,  or  the  Unobstructed 
Approach  to  God. 

The  prayer  of  Jesus,  which  John  alone  records, 
and  which  comprises  the  seventeenth  chapter  of  his 
Gospel,  leads  us  into  the  higher  realm  of  spiritual 
life,  where  the  light  of  the  divine  Presence  envel- 
opes without  overpowering  us.  As  we  have  learned 
to  enter  into  the  thought  and  share  the  life  of  our 
Lord,  we  have  been  prepared  to  follow  Him  to  this 
mountain-top  of  religious  experience  which  lies 
within  the  confines  of  His  kingdom.  We  have  been 
moving  upward  toward  John's  second  climax,  his 
crowning  statement  with  reference  to  spiritual  life 
and  leadership.  We  are  approaching  his  third 
climax,  which  embraces  the  essential  elements  of 
the  other  two.  The  first  we  find  in  the  twelfth  chap- 
ter, where  Jesus  is  publicly  recognized  as  man's 
Messiah ;  the  second,  in  the  seventeenth  chapter, 
where  Jesus  appears  as  man's  spiritual  leader,  pray- 
ing to  the  Father ;  the  third,  in  the  twentieth  chap- 
ter, where  the  crucified  Christ  rises  from  the  dead 
as  the  last  public  demonstration  of  His  deity,  the 
completion  of  His  redemptive  work,  and  the  new 
beginning  of  His  spiritual  kingdom.  Supreme 
movements  are  these,  when  a  sinful  world  is  per- 
mitted to  see  the  King  of  Israel,  the  interceding 
Savior,  the  rising  Redeemer,  all  united  in  this  one 
wonderful   Person   so  evidently   and   so   intimately 

290 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

related  to  God  and  man,  and  when  that  world  is 
even  permitted  to  accompany  Him  in  His  prayer, 
as  He  anticipates  as  well  as  reviews  His  life  and 
labor. 

This  seventeenth  chapter  impresses  us  as  a  single 
utterance  on  a  single  theme,  ''glorify  thy  Son 
that  thy  Son  may  glorify  Thee."  This  impression 
is  reflected  in  the  printing  of  our  Bibles.  This 
chapter  is  divided  into  verses  for  convenience  of 
reference,  but  even  the  Revised  Version  has  not 
grouped  the  verses  in  paragraphs  according  to  the 
different  phases  of  thought.  The  theme  does  not 
readily  dissolve  into  its  separate  parts,  yet  there  are 
phases  of  subject  matter  and  contrasts  of  thought, 
if  not  distinct  lines  of  cleavage,  which  mark  them 
off  from  each  other.  The  unity  impresses  the 
reader  rather  than  the  diversity.  His  attention  is 
naturally  fixed  on  this  wonderful  Man,  the  only 
Person  Who  could  offer  such  a  prayer.  Who  could 
press  into  the  divine  presence  absolutely  unhindered 
in  His  approach  to  God.  Nothing  in  His  own 
nature  or  conduct  or  life  clouds  His  unsullied  spirit 
or  limits  His  sense  of  God.  The  divine  thought  and 
will  find  perfect  answer  in  Him,  and  the  very  dis- 
position of  Deity  seems  to  be  revealed  to  men.  As 
Jesus  approaches  God,  the  Father,  in  this  prayer 
formulated  by  a  human  mind,  divinely  aided  and 
illuminated  and  uttered  by  human  lips,  we  note  with 
gratitude  how  close  the  Father  comes  to  Him  while 
He  is  yet  on  earth,  while  He  continues  among  men, 
while  He  still  abides  in  His  humanity. 

291 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

The  seventeenth  chapter  has  been  characterized 
as  ''the  simplest  in  language,  the  profoundest  in 
meaning,  in  the  whole  Bible."  We  read  it  and  re- 
read it,  and  seem  to  see  six  phases  of  thought,  more 
or  less  distinctly  defined.  In  verses  one  to  five, 
Jesus  prays  that  the  Father  may  glorify  Him  as  the 
head  of  the  human  race  and  the  second  Person  of 
the  holy  Trinity.  In  verses  six  to  ten.  He  declares 
that  He  has  manifested  the  name  of  the  Father 
to  chosen  men.  In  the  eleventh  to  the  thirteenth. 
He  regards  His  disciples  from  the  viewpoint  of 
His  Father's  presence.  In  the  fourteenth  to  the 
nineteenth,  He  shows  how  He  has  given  the  word 
of  God  to  His  disciples  for  their  sanctification.  In 
the  twentieth  to  the  twenty-third,  He  prays  for 
the  unity  of  believers.  In  the  twenty-fourth  to  the 
twenty-sixth,  He  desires  to  reveal  His  heavenly 
glory  and  the  enduring  name  of  the  Father  to  His 
disciples.  Thus  in  the  presence  of  the  Father,  He 
.5:irds  Himself  with  the  glory  of  His  own  being, 
human  and  divine,  recounts  His  divine  and  human 
ministries,  gathers  His  disciples  in  the  unity  of 
Christian  faith,  and  then  bears  them  into  the  very 
presence  of  God,  the  Father. 

As  John  states  with  historic  accuracy  and  philo- 
sophic insight,  we  have  before  us  the  prayer  of 
Jesus,  for  prayer  is  a  human  act  and  a  human  atti- 
tude of  mind.  Prayer  is  man's  method  of  approach 
to  God,  and  we  easily  observe  that  as  Jesus  draws 
near  to  God,  His  approach  is  not  obstructed  by 
doubt  or  sin  or  ignorance  or  even  His  humanity, 
considered  individually  or  as  man's  representative. 

292 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

His  prayer,  indeed,  is  the  prayer  of  humanity,  and 
humanity  at  its  best.  As  the  appropriate  expression 
of  holy  life  and  holy  love,  prayer  must  become  the 
effective  means  of  cultivating  both,  and  hence  also 
a  true  standard  of  personal  development.  Meas- 
ured by  this  standard  and  by  His  ordinary  practice 
through  life,  Jesus  might  be  styled  the  man  of 
prayer,  with  no  one  to  share  the  honored  title. 

Jesus  addresses  the  Father  without  effort  of 
thought  or  stress  of  feeling,  as  though  He  is  easily 
and  at  once  conscious  of  God  as  Father  and  Him- 
self as  Son.  This  conception  of  Himself  and  this 
knowledge  of  His  relation  to  the  Father  become  the 
basis  of  His  prayer,  as  they  have  been  the  secure 
foundation  of  His  teaching.  He  needs  no  change  of 
mind  or  will  in  coming  to  God,  for  His  relation  to 
God  remains  forever  the  same.  Even  prayer,  which 
brings  the  soul  up  to  its  highest  intensity  of  con- 
sciousness, reveals  no  defect  in  His  doctrine  or  dis- 
appointment in  His  purpose.  He  fully  realizes  that 
the  hour  of  His  suffering  has  come.  In  memory 
He  keeps  the  record  of  His  life  and  labor,  and  now 
presents  Himself  before  the  Father  as  prepared  for 
the  great  task  which  will  engage  His  whole  being. 

Jesus  prays  for  Himself  as  man's  Redeemer, 
Whose  work  nears  its  completion,  and  also,  as 
though  a  distant  yet  distinct  echo  from  the  first 
chapter,  for  the  restoration  of  the  glory  of  His 
deity,  which  He  enjoyed  in  association  with  the 
Father  before  the  creation  of  the  world.  The  years 
of  His  human  life  subdued  and  restrained  and  lim- 
ited His  deity.  Earth  can  bestow  no  glory,  no 
293 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

greatness  on  the  Son  of  man.  This  world  cannot 
crown  the  Son  of  God !  His  glory  comes  from  the 
Father.  He  will  not  even  glorify  Himself,  for  He 
seeks  not  His  own  glory  lest  He  become  self-seeking 
and  self-centered.  He  glorifies  the  Father  in  His 
exercise  of  authority  over  all  flesh,  bestowing  eter- 
nal life  upon  all  whom  the  Father  gives  to  Him. 
The  knowledge  of  God  and  of  Jesus  Christ,  this  is 
eternal  life,  mediated  and  ministered  to  men  on 
earth.  His  declarations  in  prayer  before  God  har- 
monize also  with  His  statements  to  the  people.  But 
how  are  we  to  construe  in  our  thought  His  petition, 
"Glorify  Thou  Me  with  Thine  own  self?"  Does 
His  human  and  divine  nature  demand  God,  the 
Father,  as  its  perfect  satisfaction?  His  teaching  in 
reference  to  Himself,  which  is  so  definite  in  doc- 
trine, which  reveals  a  spirit  so  calm  under  all  cir- 
cumstances, so  consistent  in  thought  and  life,  so 
comprehensive  in  aim  and  ideal,  convinces  us  that 
His  consciousness  is  Divine  as  well  as  human,  and 
thus  prepares  us  to  answer  our  own  question  with 
a  positive  affirmation. 

And  now  Jesus  prays  for  His  disciples,  who  had 
received  His  words  and  who  knew  that  He  had 
come  forth  from  God.  He  prays  for  them,  but  not 
for  the  world.  His  disciples  have  become  the 
chosen  channel  of  His  blessing  to  men,  and  through 
their  agency  He  will  act  in  His  perpetual  appeal  to 
men.  His  disciples  are  Christ's  and  the  Father's 
conjointly  by  right  of  redemption.  He  manifested 
to  them  the  name  of  the  Father,  but  the  Father 
gave  them  to  Him  out  of  the  world,  and  this  con- 

294 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

stitutes  their  joint  ownership.    Once  more  He  prays 
for  them,  addressing  God  as  "Holy  Father,"  and 
asking  Him   to  keep   them   in   His   Own  name   in 
order  that  they  may  enter  the  unity  of  the  divine 
Hfe.     Christ  had  kept  them,  and  none  was  lost  un- 
der His  guardianship,  save,  one,   in   fulfillment  of 
Scripture.     This  co-operation  of  the  Son  with  the 
Father  and  of  the  Father  with  the  Son,  appears 
again  and  again,  and  conveys  an  essential  truth  re- 
specting the  divinity  of  Christ.     In  the  presence  of 
God,  the  Father,  Jesus  Christ  still  bears  the  like- 
ness of  deity,  and  we  affirm  what  John  has  already 
asserted,    His   self-existence,    His   association   with 
God,  and  His  actual  deity.     He  looks   with   open 
countenance  into  the  face  of  God  and  lives,  lives 
as  He  longs  to  live,  lives  as  He  is  able  to  live,  lives 
as  His  own  being  requires  Him  to  live.     There  He 
rests  and  there  He  remains  in  the  bosom  of  the 
Father,  from  whence  He  considers  with  divine  in- 
terest the  disciples  whom  He  leaves  in  the  world  and 
in  the  Father's  care.     Yet  again  He  prays  for  His 
disciples  that  they  may  be  sanctified  in  the  truth. 
They  were  to  be  set  apart  for  a  sacred  use,  as  the 
word  signifies  in  the  Old  Testament.     Separation 
and  not  holiness  is  His  thought,  but  separation,  not 
from  what  is  impure,  but  from  what  is  common. 
The  word  appears  in  the  Old  Testament  with  ref- 
erence to  persons  and  things  which  were  no  longer 
common,  because  set  apart  for  God's  peculiar  serv- 
ice.    The  work  of  their  personal  redemption  must 
be  completed,  and  the  word  of  God,  which  He  has 
given  them,  will  work  this  result  as  it  enables  them 
29S 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

to  detect  the  evils  and  overcome  the  trials  they  must 
endure  while  they  remain  in  the  world.  As  Chris- 
tians, they  are  not  of  the  world,  and  hence  they  must 
be  perfected  on  the  plan  of  Christian  life.  They  are 
to  be  sanctified  in  the  truth  as  an  end  in  itself,  and 
then  also  they  can  be  sent  forth  as  God's  representa- 
tives in  the  world.  Character  is  an  essential  part 
of  the  Christian's  commission.  To  lift  them  to  this 
level,  to  aid  them  in  their  sanctification,  Jesus  sanc- 
tifies Himself,  thereby  illustrating  and  enforcing 
His  word  by  His  example.  The  full  weight  of  His 
authority  and  the  essential  value  of  His  leadership 
rest  upon  this  principle  of  His  teaching;  His  state- 
ment, I  have  given  them  Thy  word;  His  prayer, 
sanctify  them  in  the  truth;  His  example,  for  their 
sakes  I  sanctify  Myself. 

Lastly,  Jesus  prays  for  those  who  believe  on  Him 
through  the  word  of  His  disciples  without  any 
limitation  of  time  or  place,  of  race  or  nation,  for  He 
desires  that  they  may  enter  the  spiritual  unity  of 
all  believers  and  share  the  association  of  the  divine 
life.  His  prayer  reaches  out  through  believers  in 
all  ages,  that  the  world  may  know  by  means  of  the 
unity  of  believers  that  the  Father  sent  the  Son  as 
the  world's  Savior.  As  an  additional  aid  to  the 
spirituality  and  the  unity  of  believers,  Christ  has 
given  to  them  the  glory  of  God,  which  rested  upon 
Him,  the  glory  of  a  sanctified  life  and  a  sacred 
service. 

In  closing  His  prayer,  if  we  may  so  speak,  Jesus 
desires  to  reveal  His  glory  to  His  disciples  in  the 
presence  of  the  Father,  where  divine  love  flows  for- 
296 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

ever  unhindered  and  where  divine  Hfe  fulfills  in 
itself  the  ends  of  existence.  He  adores  the  Father 
as  righteous,  Whom  the  world  knows  not  in  His 
real  character  or  essential  being,  but  Whom  Christ 
knows  and  reveals  to  His  disciples,  that  the  love  of 
God  may  reach  down  through  Christ  to  the  least 
of  those  who  believe  in  Him  and  thus  constitute 
the  divine  life  of  the  Christian,  so  that  Christ  can 
see  Himself  in  His  own,  a  recognition  that  becomes 
mutual  in  the  company  of  all  holy  beings. 

Our  Lord  amplifies  His  doctrine  of  God  by  His 
practice  in  prayer.  Not  through  the  forms  of  reli- 
gion as  these  then  existed  did  Jesus  here  make  His 
approach  to  God,  but  simply  in  prayer,  through  His 
own  consciousness,  His  own  personality,  just  as 
men  are  taught  to  do,  whatever  aids  they  may  find 
in  religious  forms  and  religious  fellowship.  God  is 
a  Spirit;  they  that  worship  Him  must  worship  in 
spirit  and  truth.  Since  Jesus  has  made  plain  the  prin- 
ciple that  "access  to  God  is  the  privilege  of  human 
personaHty,"  let  no  man  lightly  forfeit  his  birthright. 

Jesus  addresses  God  as  Father,  Holy  Father, 
righteous  Father,  in  His  prayer,  in  perfect  con- 
sistency with  His  previous  preaching.  His  deepest 
consciousness  reveals  no  other  sense  of  God,  and 
we  may  say  here  in  anticipation  of  our  subsequent 
study  that  in  death  as  well  as  in  hfe,  this  name  was 
true  to  Him.  He  knows  Himself  as  the  Son  and 
God  as  His  Father.  He  speaks  of  Himself  as  "Thy 
Son,"  and  "the  Son."  Like  a  Son,  He  makes  re- 
quest of  the  Father,  and  like  a  Son,  He  offers  His 
obedience  to  the  Father.  He  co-operates  with  God 
297 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

in  carrying  out  His  plans  and  purposes,  acting  not 
as  a  subordinate,  but  right  on  the  level  of  deity. 
If  He  gives  Himself  in  the  work  of  human  redemp- 
tion, He  also  asks  the  Father  to  ''glorify  the  Son 
with  Thine  own  self."  He  is  the  Son  in  asking  and 
receiving,  and  His  Sonship  rings  true  to  Him  as  a 
metaphysical  reality,  and  cannot  be  regarded  merely 
as  a  doctrine  originated  by  man's  genius,  construc- 
ted by  human  thought,  and  adopted  by  the  devotion 
of  His  disciples. 

The  authority  of  Jesus  is  God-given  and  extends 
to  all  mankind.  No  mere  man  could  receive  or 
exercise  such  authority.  No  mere  man  could  sus- 
tain such  an  assumption.  Practically  He  exercised 
God-given  authority,  "speaking  and  it  was  done, 
commanding  and  it  stood  fast."  He  directs  the  soul 
with  absolute  confidence  and  forgives  sin  with  pal- 
pable evidence  of  the  fact  and  with  personal  satis- 
faction to  the  sinful  soul.  He  enters  the  inner  life 
of  the  spirit  and  there  reveals  what  God  and  the 
soul  alone  know,  and  this  He  does  with  convincing 
effect  upon  the  mind  thus  illuminated  by  His  pres- 
ence. He  passes  judgment  on  human  acts  and 
human  beings  and  corroborates  conscience.  No 
mere  man  could  exercise  authority  as  He  did  for 
three  years,  much  less  for  all  the  troubled  ages.  No 
mere  man  could  actually  place  himself  beneath  such 
a  burden  of  responsibility  for  a  single  moment. 

Eternal  life  is  defined  as  the  knowledge  of  God 
and  Jesus  Christ,  Whom  He  hath  sent.  It  is  more 
tkan  natural  life  or  conscious  existence.  It  is  life 
in  the  ethical  sense,  or  conscious  existence  after  the 

298 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

likeness  of  God,  in  Whose  image  man  was  made. 
Jesus  knows  what  it  is,  for  He  proposes  to  bestow 
it  upon  men.  It  is  the  knowledge  of  the  two,  God 
and  Christ,  and  not  of  either  one  alone.  The  knowl- 
edge of  the  one  implies  the  knowledge  of  the  other, 
for  the  knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ  leads  to  perfect, 
personal  knowledge  of  God.  On  the  basis  of  the 
essential  deity  of  Christ,  there  is  no  unfounded  as- 
sumption here,  but  only  a  consistent  carrying  out  of 
a  great  truth.  Eternal  life  has  its  source  in  God 
and  in  Jesus  Christ,  Who  comes  to  reveal  God  to 
men  that  this  knowledge  may  govern  their  whole 
being.  This  knowledge  reconstitutes  the  man  by 
means  of  a  real  personal  relation  to  God. 

Jesus  announces  the  completion  of  His  God-given 
task  of  revelation  and  redemption  even  before  it 
becomes  a  historic  fact.  In  the  steadfast  mind  and 
heart  of  Christ,  the  work  is  complete  in  all  its  par- 
ticulars and  all  its  essential  truth.  Failure  has  not 
marked  His  pathway  nor  marred  His  purpose.  He 
works  toward  a  definite  end,  thus  affording  oppor- 
tunity for  defeat,  actual  and  evident,  but  He  shows 
results  at  every  stage  of  progress,  and  comes  in  due 
time  to  His  chosen  conclusion.  His  success  is  not 
fortuitous  or  uncertain,  but  the  intelligent  accom- 
plishment of  a  mighty  task. 

Perhaps  we  are  not  prepared  to  hear  Him  in- 
voke upon  Himself  the  glory  of  the  Father's  self- 
hood, a  glory  such  as  He  had  before  the  creation  of 
the  world.  Here  He  plainly  shows  the  conscious- 
ness of  a  life  which  He  lived  before  He  appeared 
on  earth.     Through  the  years  of  His  human  Hfe, 

299 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

however,  He  has  not  abdicated  His  authority  in  the 
kingdom  of  God  or  renounced  His  deity,  but  Hves 
in  view  of  His  pre-existent  life  and  of  His  final  re- 
turn to  God.  Even  now  He  claims  the  full  divine 
life  and  the  completer  association  with  God,  the 
Father,  than  His  earth-life  allowed.  He  responds 
to  God,  the  Father,  in  terms  of  Deity  and  Sonship. 
If  we  cannot  anticipate  the  movement  of  His  mind, 
can  we  not  follow  Him  in  His  prayer  reverently 
and  intelligently,  and  appreciate  the  logic  of  His 
life,  the  consistency  of  His  doctrine,  and  the  con- 
clusion to  which  He  comes,  the  knowledge  of  God 
as  self-existent  and  self-revealing? 

He  states  in  plainest  terms  and  in  perfect  con- 
fidence the  fact  that  He  had  manifested  God  to  men 
and  had  given  His  words  to  them,  a  great  task, 
greater  than  that  entrusted  to  Moses  in  the  giving 
of  the  law,  which  entailed  no  personal  hardship  save 
as  men  were  slow  to  understand.  It  is  a  task  for  a 
divine  Person  Who  easily  knows  the  doctrine  He 
teaches.  Whose  example  illustrates  and  enforces  His 
words.  Whose  power  equals  His  wisdom,  and 
Whose  humility  is  measured  by  His  greatness.  On 
one  side  of  the  equation  let  us  place  man's  fallen 
nature,  his  ignorance,  and  his  unbelief ;  and  on  the 
other,  let  us  place  God,  God  in  Christ,  personally 
and  sacrificially  revealing  Himself  to  men. 

Earnest,  intelligent  men  received  the  words  of 
Christ  as  coming  from  God,  and  Christ  Himself  as 
sent  by  God,  men  who  were  thoughtful,  men  who 
were  skeptical,  men  who  were  hard  to  convince. 
Such  men  became  His  disciples  and  learned  to  know 

300 


I'he  Prayer  of  Jesus 

what  it  meant  to  belong  to  the  Christ  and  to  the 
Father.  Carrying  out  the  conception  of  joint  own- 
ership, Jesus  prays  that  as  He  had  kept  His  dis- 
ciples, even  so  the  Father  may  keep  them  in  the  life 
divine.  They  will  be  hated  by  the  world  while  they 
are  in  any  way  related  to  it  and  while  their  supreme 
relationship  to  Christ  governs  their  thoughts  and 
actions. 

His  prayer  claims  the  ideal  and  the  actual  unity 
of  all  believers  among  themselves  as  an  object  of 
His  desire,  and  then  also  the  corresponding  unity 
with  Himself  and  with  God.  Believers  must  all  base 
their  lives  on  the  same  fundamental  principles,  or, 
shall  we  say,  the  same  fundamental  Persons.  They 
are  all  to  reach  the  same  conclusions  in  essentially 
the  same  way.  They  are  all  to  live  the  same  life 
as  a  perpetual  testimony  and  a  convincing  evidence 
to  the  world.  The  dewdrop  must  reflect  the  sun 
as  a  law  of  its  own  existence.  Men  of  the  world 
may  not  read  the  Word  of  God,  but  they  must  be- 
hold the  living  believer  who  cannot  logically  dis- 
own his  relation  to  his  fellow  believers  or  his  rela- 
tion to  Christ  and  God. 

This  prayer  of  Jesus  lifts  His  disciples  up  into 
the  higher  altitudes  of  holy  life.  It  directs  their 
minds  to  the  four  objects  for  which  Christ  prays 
in  their  behalf  and  which  Christians  should  daily 
desire,  preservation,  sanctification,  unity,  and  final 
glory  in  Christ's  company.  They  feel  the  uplifting 
pressure  of  His  divine  desire  that  they  may  be 
with  Him  where  He  is,  in  the  very  presence  of  the 
Father,  in  conscious  harmony  and  personal  fellow- 
301 


The  inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

ship  with  Him.  Only  there  can  they  behold  His 
glory  and  really  enter  His  life,  with  all  its  aims  and 
ideals  and  activities,  its  honors  and  associations  and 
outlook,  as  these  are  constituted  in  the  kingdom  of 
God.  Only  there  can  they  see  Him  as  the  Son  of 
God  and  the  Savior  of  the  world,  Who  has  a  regal 
right  to  their  perfect  confidence,  their  perfect  de- 
votion, and  their  perfect  service.  Only  there  can 
they  perceive  the  love  of  the  Father  for  Him  and 
for  the  race  He  represents :  "God  so  loved  the  world, 
that  He  gave  His  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  on  Him  should  not  perish,  but  have  eternal 
life." 

The  Son's  absolute  knowledge  of  the  Father  is- 
sues in  His  absolute  revelation  of  Him  in  His  prac- 
tical teaching.  His  perfect  example,  His  mighty 
works,  His  profound  prayer,  His  vicarious  death, 
His  promised  resurrection.  His  consciousness  con- 
tains no  doubt  of  His  deity,  as  it  holds  none  con- 
cerning His  humanity,  and  he  is  a  happy  man  whose 
consciousness  retains  no  lurking  fear,  no  lingering 
doubt  on  either  point,  but  is  clarified  in  the  settled 
conviction  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  Son  of  God  and 
the  Savior  of  men.  Happy  is  the  man  who  builds 
his  life,  interior  and  exterior,  upon  this  secure  foun- 
dation, which  is  low  enough  for  men  to  attain  in 
time  and  high  enough  for  them  to  rest  upon  in 
eternity. 

The  prayer  of  Jesus  reveals  to  us  a  Person  Who 
has  both  a  human  and  a  divine  consciousness,  Who 
holds  converse  and  communion  with  God  in  His 
human  consciousness  and  by  means  of  human  lan- 

302 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

guage  unhindered  by  sin  and  ignorance  and  doubt, 
and  Who  thus  records  His  perfect  harmony  with 
God  and  His  personal  fellowship  with  Him.  The 
human  consciousness  of  Christ  has  made  its  own 
record  in  His  prayer.  It  is  not  lost  in  the  divine, 
nor  does  the  divine  destroy  the  human  or  in  any 
way  obscure  it  by  excess  of  light.  The  lower  con- 
sciousness rings  true  to  the  higher  and  the  higher 
pervades  the  lower.  The  deity  of  Christ  is  thus  a 
metaphysical  reality  that  reveals  itself  in  the  Chris- 
tian consciousness  of  the  child  of  God  and  also 
through  his  Christian  activity  when  he  co-operates 
with  Christ  in  winning  a  human  spirit  from  its 
old  conscious  existence  to  a  new  conscious  life 
personally  related  to  Christ  and  God. 

We  may  note  with  some  surprise  that  Jesus  does 
not  speak  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  His  high  priestly 
prayer.  In  this,  as  in  all  His  teaching  and  all  His 
acts  He  shows  that  His  approach  to  God,  the 
Father,  is  unmediated  as  well  as  unobstructed.  His 
approach  is  direct  and  personal,  face  to  face.  Men 
come  to  God  in  prayer  through  the  mediation  of 
Christ  and  by  the  assistance  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
Who  is  sent  by  the  Father  and  the  Son.  They  can- 
not rise  to  God  unaided  and  alone.  God's  approach 
to  them  in  Christ,  as  a  Savior,  and  by  the  Holy 
Spirit,  as  a  Sanctifier,  precedes  their  approach  to 
God.  Not  so  with  this  wonderful  One  W^hose 
prayer  we  study  with  awe,  if  not  with  adoration. 
He  presses  into  the  very  presence  of  the  Father, 
breathing  the  very  spirit  of  truth  and  love  and  obe- 
dience, and  claiming  Him  as  the  real  answer  to  His 

303 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

prayer  and  the  real  correlate  of  His  being.  The 
Son  belongs  to  the  Father  and  the  Father  to  the 
Son  through  the  invisible  Spirit,  Person  answering 
to  Person  in  the  organic  unity  of  the  Holy  Trinity. 
As  we  survey  the  seventeenth  chapter  of  John, 
we  are  enabled  to  formulate  certain  facts  which  con- 
cern our  own  religious  life.  We  are  instructed  as 
well  as  impressed  as  we  listen  to  Jesus  praying  as 
a  man  and  as  a  religious  leader.  He  is  our  example 
in  His  thought  and  spirit,  and  especially  as  regards 
the  result  or  answer  to  prayer  which  concerns  us 
and  often  perplexes  us  so  deeply.  His  prayer  is 
based  on  His  personal  relation  to  the  Father,  the 
true  foundation  for  all  our  prayers.  He  prays  to 
the  Father  without  mediation,  just  as  we  should 
expect  Him  to  do,  and  says  what  no  creature  could 
say  in  prayer  to  God,  "Glorify  Me  that  I  may 
glorify  Thee."  He  renders  to  God  as  well  as  re- 
ceives from  God.  His  prayer  has  all  the  parts  of 
prayer — the  address  to  deity,  thanksgiving  in  spirit 
if  not  in  form,  petition,  consecration,  confession  of 
obedience,  and  adoration.  The  order  of  His  thought 
is  as  unconventional  as  it  is  unconstrained,  moving 
with  perfect  freedom  under  the  weight  of  the  great- 
est responsibility  and  under  the  inspiration  of  the 
greatest  themes.  The  human  prayer  of  Jesus  al- 
most blends  with  the  divine  answer,  the  deferred 
answer  in  event  following  fittingly  the  immediate 
answer  in  the  realm  of  harmonious,  personal  life. 
History  has  given  us,  and  is  still  giving  us,  the 
Father's  answer  to  the  Savior's  prayer,  an  answer 
which  is  racial  as  well  as  individual  in  its  content 
304 


The  Prayer  of  Jesus 

and  significance.  Centuries  of  human  life  are 
here  enfolded  in  the  thought  of  Christ,  as  the  oak 
is  wrapped  in  the  acorn. 

John  alone  has  given  us  the  record  of  this  lumi- 
nous prayer  of  Jesus,  a  prayer  which  not  only 
concludes,  but  also  crowns  his  chapters  on  the  spir- 
itual life ;  which  fits  his  philosophy  of  being  and 
life  and  salvation;  which  points  to  the  completion 
of  the  divine  life  of  men;  which  directs  disciples 
in  all  ages  in  their  personal  approach  to  God. 


305 


PART   V 
The  Divine  Redeemei 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 
Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment. 

The  quick  descent  from  the  sublime  heights  of 
the  seventeenth  chapter  to  the  dark  depths  of  the 
eighteenth  takes  place  as  Jesus  goes  forth  with  His 
disciples,  crosses  the  Kidron,  and  enters  the  Garden 
of  Gethsemene.  The  contrast  is  more  evident  and 
more  impressive  than  that  which  appears  between 
the  twelfth,  in  which  the  public  entry  is  described, 
and  the  thirteenth,  in  which  Jesus  renders  the  most 
menial  service.  There  He  drops  from  the  king  to 
the  servant,  but  here  He  steps  down  from  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Father  to  answer  at  the  bar  of  human 
judgment. 

From  the  very  beginning,  His  appeal  has  been  to 
men,  His  service  has  been  offered  to  them.  His  life 
has  been  lived  among  them.  He  has  been  One 
among  them,  but  now  He  places  Himself  in  their 
hands.  They  are  permitted  to  weigh  Him  in  the 
balance  of  human  judgment  and  even  sentence  Him 
according  to  the  behest  of  the  human  will.  To  se- 
cure such  a  result,  men  must  be  free,  free  to  do  with 
the  divine  Christ  as  they  will,  free  so  far  as  He  is 
concerned,  however  they  may  be  constrained  by 
personal  prejudice  and  personal  interest,  by  fear  of 
foes  and  respect  for  established  authority,  by  choice 
of  an  easy  solution  of  a  hard  problem  according  to 
which  one  innocent  person  perishes  to  save  the 
many  and  above  all,  to  preserve  the  nation. 
307 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

The  prayer  of  Jesus  prepares  Him  for  the  be- 
trayal in  the  garden,  though  we  may  be  incHned  to 
think  it  could  only  unfit  Him  for  such  a  rude  re- 
jection. For  all  the  other  great  events  of  His  life, 
prayer  was  His  preparation.  It  kept  Him  in  har- 
mony with  heaven  and  fostered  the  wisdom  of 
obedience  to  God  and  the  courage  of  a  settled  pur- 
pose. Perfectly  prepared  in  mind  and  heart,  He 
went  forth  to  the  place  where  Judas  found  Him, 
for  Judas  knew  the  place  and  the  habit  of  the  Mas- 
ter, who  "oft-times  resorted  thither  with  His  dis- 
ciples." Jesus  has  no  thought  of  outwitting  Judas 
by  doing  the  unaccustomed  thing  and  thus  saving 
Himself  without  a  conflict.  His  mind  moves  in  its 
appointed  channel,  and,  lest  the  reader  should  miss 
the  voluntary  acceptance  of  His  arrest  and  its  con- 
sequences, John  tells  us  that  "Jesus  therefore, 
knowing  all  the  things  that  were  coming  upon  Him, 
went  forth  and  saith  unto  them.  Whom  seek  ye?" 
He  makes  Himself  known  to  His  betrayer  and  His 
captors,  and  by  so  much  aids  them  in  carrying  out 
their  purpose  to  apprehend  Him. 
•  Once  at  least,  Judas  appears  as  a  leader  among 
men,  and  not  as  a  follower;  once  he  stands  at  the 
front  and  not  at  the  rear ;  once  he  directs  the  move- 
ments of  men  and  is  not  under  the  direction  of  an- 
other. For  one  brief  moment  he  is  free,  free  to  act 
as  his  own  will  demands.  His  conscience  seems 
to  be  quiescent,  while  his  intellect  may  be  active. 
Perhaps  he  thinks  his  deed  will  only  call  out  the 
power  and  the  purpose  of  the  Christ  and  precipitate 
the  establishment  of  His  kingdom.  Perhaps  he  is 
308 


The  inner  Witness  ot  the  Fourth  Gospel 

tired  of  the  continued  uncertainty  which  seemed  to 
fill  so  many  minds.  Perhaps  he  desired  Jesus  to 
declare  His  Messiahship  in  terms  of  earthly  king- 
doms and  earthly  rulers.  But  whatever  his  thought 
and  whatever  his  purpose,  Judas  proves  to  be  an 
unsafe  religious  leader.  Behold  him  at  the  head  of 
"the  band  of  soldiers,  and  officers  from  the  chief 
priests  and  Pharisees,"  with  their  lanterns  and 
torches  and  weapons.  As  their  leader,  he  is  stand- 
ing with  them  and  facing  Christ  in  active  opposi- 
tion. He  has  failed  to  bring  his  mind  into  harmony 
with  the  mind  of  Christ  and  his  will  into  submis- 
sion to  the  will  of  Christ,  and  his  failure  writes  his 
history  at  this  crucial  point.  It  seems  natural  to 
him  to  do  just  what  he  is  doing,  however  unnatural 
it  may  appear  to  all  the  world  besides.  Nor  does 
Jesus  appeal  to  him  to  change  places,  to  lay  aside 
his  leadership  and  become  a  follower  again,  to  re- 
pent of  his  traitorous  intent  and  thus  prevent  the 
arrest.  On  the  contrary.  He  calmly  accepts  the 
course  of  divine  Providence,  including  the  agency 
of  His  arrest  and  the  entire  combination  of  circum- 
stances and  events.  Once,  just  once,  Jesus  is  sub- 
ject to  Judas,  and  the  purpose  of  Judas  prevails. 
Once,  at  least  once,  the  thought  of  Judas  seems  to 
coincide  with  the  thought  of  God,  and  Jesus  is  be- 
trayed into  the  hands  of  sinners. 

The  first  failure  to  lay  hands  upon  Jesus,  without 
any  apparent  exercise  of  power  on  His  part,  might 
have  served  to  show  the  inferiority  of  Judas,  sup- 
ported as  he  was  by  the  cohort  of  soldiers,  a  num- 
ber deemed  sufficient  to  more  than  ''match  a  mir- 
309 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

acle,"  and  by  the  officers  from  the  chief  priests  and 
the  Pharisees.  If  Jesus  exerts  no  power  in  His 
own  behalf,  His  authority  yet  clings  to  Him.  He 
offers  Himself  to  them  and  requests  them  to  let  His 
disciples  go  free,  while  He  forbids  His  disciples  to 
make  defense.  "I  told  you  that  I  am  He ;  if,  there- 
fore ye  seek  Me,  let  these  go  their  way."  They 
need  cause  you  no  trouble  as  you  need  cause  them 
none.  To  His  disciples  He  says,  "Put  up  the  sword 
into  the  sheath :  the  cup  which  the  Father  hath 
given  me,  shall  I  not  drink  it?"  He  accepts  His 
arrest  voluntarily,  or  shall  we  not  rather  say  witli 
perfect  knowledge  of  its  full  significance,  the  only 
way  it  could  be  consummated  by  One  Who  is  the 
Son  of  God.  He  must  submit  to,  and  even  co-oper- 
ate with,  men  who  are  out  of  harmony  with  Him. 
Their  evil  intentions  are  their  own,  and  form  a 
dark  background  on  which  the  purity  of  His  pur- 
pose shines  out  in  clearest  outHne  and  severest  con- 
trast. 

The  man  who  was  the  agent  of  His  betrayal  and 
the  men  who  were  the  instigators  of  His  arrest,  all 
failed  to  realize  the  results  they  anticipated  and 
desired.  The  leadership  of  Judas  lasted  for  a  few 
short  moments  of  time,  but  it  led  to  consequences 
which  neither  he  nor  the  Jewish  leaders  had  cal- 
culated. Judas  may  have  been  disappointed  when 
Jesus  failed  to  exert  His  power  in  self-deliverance, 
while  the  Jewish  leaders  must  have  been  disap- 
pointed because  the  death  of  Jesus  failed  to  remove 
Him  from  human  history  as  a  factor  and  a  force, 
but  rather  perfected  and  extended  His  power. 
310 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

After  His  death  and  resurrection,  Jesus  becomes  a 
Person  of  divine  presence  and  power,  even  in  the 
estimation  of  His  enemies,  v^ho  are  often  at  a  loss 
to  know  just  how  to  reckon  with  Him.  Before  His 
death,  Judas  ends  his  leadership  of  opposition  to 
Him  by  self-destruction,  as  though  this  were  the 
only  adequate  remedy  suggested  by  a  troubled  mind 
and  an  accusing  conscience.  Judas  had  thought  of 
Christ  untruly  and  as  He  was  not,  until  he  could 
not  think  of  Him  truly,  and  as  He  was,  ''the  Lamb 
of  God  Who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world." 
The  tragic  end  of  Judas'  life  has  no  place  in  John's 
Gospel,  nor  has  his  confession  of  his  sin  and  his 
assertion  of  Jesus'  innocence,  but  John  tells  us 
enough  to  convince  us  that  no  quick  reversal  of 
mental  action  and  even  moral  judgment  are  suf- 
ficient to  work  a  reformation  of  character.  The 
psychology  of  the  sinful  soul  reveals  conscience 
aroused,  intellect  active,  and  the  will  at  work,  but 
no  Christ.  Eternal  life  is  the  knowledge  of  Christ 
and  God,  and  eternal  death  must  then  be  just  the 
opposite.  In  New  Testament  usage,  death  means 
separation  from  God,  not  in  the  sense  of  being 
physically  or  metaphysically  outside  of  Him,  bui 
in  the  sense  of  having  different  moral  aims  and 
ideals,  different  spiritual  plans  and  purposes ;  a  dif- 
ferent state  of  mind  and  atmosphere  of  being,  in 
which  the  mind  and  will  of  God  are  neither  wel- 
come nor  dominant  factors.  The  man  who  delib- 
erately excludes  himself  from  the  life  and  love, 
the  purity  and  holiness  of  God,  must  discover, 
sooner  or  later,  an  accurate  description  of  himself 
311 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

in  the  Scripture  language,  "without  God  and  with- 
out hope  in  the  world."  He  has  broken  the  pitcher 
at  the  fountain  where  the  thirsty  soul  requires  it 
most. 

The  betrayal  by  Judas  is  followed  closely  in 
John's  record  of  events  by  Peter's  threefold  denial. 
They  led  Jesus  to  Annas  first,  but  He  was  arraigned 
also  before  Caiaphas,  the  high  priest,  who  had  al- 
ready given  counsel  **that  it  was  expedient  that 
one  man  should  die  for  the  people."  If  he  had  not 
thus  really  prejudged  the  case,  he  had,  at  least,  laid 
down  the  principle  on  which  his  anticipated  sentence 
could  easily  and  plausibly  be  reached.  The  ques- 
tions of  the  high  priest  called  forth  the  statement 
from  the  prisoner  that  His  teaching  was  entirely  in 
public  and  that  His  hearers  could  testify  concerning 
the  doctrine  He  taught.  He  also  made  the  dignified 
demand  that  He  should  have  fair  treatment  for 
right  conduct  in  presence  of  the  court.  While  Jesu» 
is  being  examined  by  these  two  officers  of  the  Jew- 
ish hierarchy,  Peter  is  being  questioned  concerning 
his  connection  with  Jesus. 

While  Jesus  had  but  recently  foretold  Peter's  de- 
nial, this  foreknowledge  of  the  fact  has  apparently 
nothing  to  do  with  bringing  it  to  pass.  It  had  no 
eflfect  whatever  on  the  causes  which  brought  it 
about,  no  influence  in  shaping  the  incidents  or  de- 
termining the  surroundings,  no  power  over  Peter 
to  guard  him  in  the  place  of  temptation,  or  even 
guide  him  in  avoiding  it.  The  foreknowledge  of 
the  denial  and  the  prediction  of  the  denial,  even  to 
Peter  himself,  in  no  way  aided  in  producing  it.  The 
312 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

knowledge  belongs  to  Jesus,  and  the  act  is  Peter's 
alone.  Incidents  fit  freely,  each  in  its  place,  and 
Peter  moves  on,  step  by  step,  to  his  threefold  fall. 
His  ardent  love  for  the  Master  drew  him  close  to 
Him,  while  his  fear  of  His  enemies  caused  him  to 
deny  his  Lord.  Contrary  to  all  expectation,  Jesus 
is  apparently  shorn  of  His  power,  and  His  leader- 
ship seems  to  have  reached  its  limit.  The  Jewish 
ecclesiastics  have  publicly  expressed  their  relentless 
opposition  and  have  successfully  invoked  the  power 
of  the  Roman  governor  to  execute  their  will.  Must 
men  still  confess  Him  and  thereby  imperil  their  own 
lives,  or  does  wisdom  kindly  point  out  another  path  ? 
Peter  read  his  own  heart  and  said,  I  will  lay 
down  my  life  for  Thee.  Jesus  read  the  same  heart 
at  the  same  moment  and  said.  The  cock  shall  not 
crow  till  thou  hast  denied  me  thrice.  Emotional 
and  impulsive  as  Peter  surely  was,  a  single  denial 
under  the  sudden  stress  of  unexpected  temptation 
might  seem  quite  possible,  when  a  second  and  third 
would  appear  to  be  entirely  out  of  the  range  of  pos- 
sibility. To  be  sure,  failure  only  leads  to  further 
failure  unless  a  powerful  reaction  results.  But  here 
the  cause  of  the  denial  was  not  removed  and  the 
effect  appeared  again  and  again.  Peter  is  awake 
to  the  influences  about  him,  and  his  mind  and  will 
act  accordingly.  How  grandly  he  had  confessed 
Christ  in  the  company  of  His  followers  as  their  best 
spokesman,  while  now  he  denies  Him  in  the  com- 
pany of  His  enemies  as  though  he  were  one  of  them. 
Sincerely  devoted  to  Jesus  in  mind  and  in  heart,  yet 
in  presence  of  personal  danger,  and  perhaps  even 
313 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

of  death,  he  yielded  for  the  moment  to  the  enemies 
of  His  Lord.  They  exercise  a  controlling  influence 
over  his  mind  and  even  govern  his  will  for  a  short 
space  of  time,  and  his  thrice  repeated  denial  shows 
us  a  man  bowing  in  abject  submission  to  man  when 
he  might  have  been  standing  up  at  his  full  height  in 
courageous  confession  of  his  faith  in  Jesus  Christ 
as  *'the  Holy  One  of  God." 

Prophecy  had  long  before  asserted  that  the  Mes- 
siah would  tread  the  wine  press  alone,  and  now 
history  writes  the  fact  in  terms  of  its  own  selection 
without  any  reference  to  prophecy.  Men  wonder  at 
the  outcome  of  history,  as  well  as  the  divine  antici- 
pation of  history  as  recorded  in  prophecy.  Yet 
truth  is  not  two  things,  but  only  one,  and  as  the 
truth,  Jesus  Christ  is  the  vital  element  in  both  his- 
tory and  prophecy.  He  is  the  touch-stone  of  char- 
acter and  the  interpretation  of  personaHty.  He 
knew  Peter  better  than  Peter  knew  Peter.  Three 
years  of  teaching  by  the  greatest  of  all  Teachers, 
three  years  of  association  with  the  divine  Christ,  all 
this  set  aside  for  the  moment  and  rendered  inoper- 
ative by  the  question  of  a  maid !  Fear  has  yet  more 
power  than  faith,  and  Peter  is  evidently  not  ready 
to  die  for  Christ.  Christ  must  first  die  for  Peter 
before  Peter  can  truly,  lovingly,  triumphantly  die 
for  Christ,  or  even  live  for  Him. 

Denial  is  not  betrayal,  far  from  it.  Judas  was  not 
warned  by  Jesus  of  his  evil  purposes  which  led  to 
evil  deeds  and  evil  consequences.  He  is  rather  per- 
mitted to  proceed  on  his  own  chosen  course  with 
every  obstacle  removed.    Betrayal  meant  loss  of  faith 

314 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

in  Christ,  partial  if  not  total,  and  willingness  to  join 
with  the  enemies  of  Jesus,  and  then  also  the  com- 
plete surrender  of  Jesus  to  them.  Denial  meant  the 
desire  to  follow  Jesus  in  sincere  devotion,  submis- 
sion to  the  enemies  of  Jesus  through  fear,  and  then 
also  the  momentary  separation  of  himself  from 
Jesus  by  his  own  act  of  assertion.  But  here  as  be- 
fore Peter  misreads  himself.  He  is  "one  of  this 
man's  disciples"  as  a  fact  of  the  past  and  in  the 
faith  of  the  future.  He  is  allied  with  Jesus  in 
thought  and  life,  in  hope  and  aspiration.  Here  he 
was  mistaken  in  his  knowledge  of  himself,  just  as 
he  was  mistaken  and  failed  completely  when  he 
measured  himself  by  the  divine  standard  of  devo- 
tion. When  the  Christian  desires  to  know  who  he 
is,  and  what  he  can  do,  let  him  inquire  of  the  only 
One  Who  really  knows,  and  without  Whose  aid  he 
can  do  nothing  in  God's  spiritual  kingdom.  Peter's 
denial  shook  his  confidence  in  himself  to  its  very 
foundations,  but  Christ's  confidence  in  Peter  sub- 
sequently became  the  sure  foundation  on  which  his 
impulsive  nature  could  securely  rest. 

Betrayed  by  Judas,  denied  by  Peter,  and  tried  by 
Annas,  Caiaphas,  and  Pilate,  Jesus  is  repeatedly 
measured  by  men,  He  is  weighed  again  and  again 
in  the  scales  of  human  judgment.  Perhaps  in  each 
case  we  may  discover  abundant  reason  to  affirm 
mis  judgment  or  even  personal  and  official  vindica- 
tion of  the  prisoner,  with  the  final  result  of  his  con- 
demnation and  death  unchanged.  One  verdict  and 
only  one  could  satisfy  the  Jewish  rulers,  and  that 
one  they  secured  by  clamor  and  threat  rather  than 

315 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

by  means  of  evidence.  Human  judgment  is  part 
will  and  part  reason,  and  its  real  value  must  be 
measured  by  the  relative  weight  of  these  two  in- 
gredients, as  well  as  the  quality  of  each.  Divine 
judgment  expresses  breadth  and  depth  of  intelli- 
gence which  is  never  narrowed  or  betrayed  by  the 
action  of  the  will.  The  divine  intelligence  is  sus- 
tained by  the  divine  will,  and  never  perverted  by  it. 
''Yet  it  pleased  Jehovah  to  bruise  Him ;  He  hath  put 
Him  to  grief;  when  Thou  shalt  make  His  soul  an 
offering  for  sin,  He  shall  see  His  seed,  He  shall  pro- 
long His  days,  and  the  pleasure  of  Jehovah  shall 
prosper  in  His  hand."  By  divine  decree  as  well  as 
by  human  judgment,  Jesus  must  die,  a  co-operation 
of  will  that  is  in  no  sense  a  concert  of  purpose  or 
mental  action.  In  the  mind  of  God,  Jesus  dies  a 
vicarious  death  in  order  to  accomplish  human  re- 
demption; in  the  minds  of  the  Jewish  rulers  He 
dies  as  a  disturber  of  the  peace.  He  dies  that  the 
old  order  may  continue  to  exist,  that  the  new  doc- 
trine may  disappear,  that  they  may  crush  once  for 
all  the  religious  movement  which  has  sprung  like  a 
shoot  from  the  old  system,  and,  in  short,  that  they 
may  continue  to  be  the  religious  leaders  of  the  na- 
tion, if  not  also  of  the  race. 

In  his  narrative,  John  does  not  record  all  the 
movements  in  the  trial  of  Jesus,  but  just  such  facts 
as  will  show  how  the  verdict  of  condemnation  was 
reached.  Jesus  is  brought  bound  before  Annas  and 
then  Caiaphas,  the  former  closely  related  to  the  lat- 
ter and  the  latter  having  already  anticipated  the 
outcome  of  the  case.  The  only  defense  of  Jesus  is 
316 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

His  innocence  as  an  individual,  a  citizen,  and  a 
teacher.  He  claims  His  right  under  the  law  not  to 
offer  testimony  against  Himself,  but  appeals  with 
confidence  to  His  hearers  as  competent  witnesses 
respecting  His  teaching  and  His  influence.  From 
the  Jewish  court  He  is  led  to  the  Prsetorium,  into 
the  presence  of  the  Roman  governor.  To  prevent 
defilement,  the  Jews  enter  not,  for  they  must  eat 
the  Passover.  Externalism  takes  the  best  possible 
care  of  itself,  for  that  is  all  there  is  of  it  either  to 
save  or  to  lose.  A  touch  may  taint,  but  the  unjust 
thought,  the  irrational  hatred,  the  malevolent  will, 
these  can  be  harbored  without  sense  of  sin  or  danger 
of  pollution !  Strange  contradictions  continually 
confront  the  man  whose  will  overmasters  his  con- 
science and  his  reason.  Unexpected  results  arise 
in  the  path  of  any  company  or  combination  of  men 
who  undertake  to  reverse  the  poles  of  moral  judg- 
ment in  order  to  vindicate  the  guilty  and  condemn 
thie  innocent. 

Pilate  proceeds  according  to  the  Valerian  law 
and  also  shows  his  official  respect  for  the  Jewish 
rulers,  when  he  goes  out  to  inquire  of  them,  ''What 
accusation  bring  ye  against  this  man?"  Their  an- 
swer assumes  that  they  are  satisfied  as  to  His  guilt, 
and  therefore  they  now  deliver  Him  to  Pilate  for 
sentence  rather  than  retrial  or  a  review  of  their  pro- 
ceedings. 'Tf  this  man  were  not  an  evil  doer  we 
should  not  have  delivered  Him  unto  thee."  But 
Pilate  knows  the  accusers  as  well  as  the  accused, 
and  would  willingly  relieve  himself  of  responsibility 
by  leaving  the  Jews  to  judge  Jesus.     'Take  Him 

317 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

yourselves  and  judge  Him  according  to  your  law," 
but  they  at  once  reply,  *'it  is  not  lawful  for  us  to 
put  any  man  to  death."  The  death  sentence  is  what 
they  desire,  and  nothing  short  of  this  will  satisfy 
their  insistent  demand.  In  an  age  when  human  life 
was  held  cheap,  and  at  a  time  when  the  Roman 
governor  desired  to  cultivate  the  good  will  of  the 
Jewish  rulers,  this  confession  of  their  purpose 
plainly  revealed  to  Pilate  the  task  before  him  as 
the  price  of  their  favor. 

Hence,  Pilate  returns  to  the  Pr?etorium  and  the 
prisoner,  and  questions  Him  once  more  in  order  to 
discover  grounds  for  conviction  or  for  release.  Pi- 
late shows  a  certain  knowledge  of  Jesus  by  his 
question,  "Art  thou  the  King  of  the  Jews?"  Jesus 
answers  by  asking  a  question  also,  a  question  that 
points  to  Pilate's  possible  personal  interest  in  Him. 
As  a  ruler,  Pilate  never  before  came  in  conflict  with 
Jesus,  li  Jesus  is  the  King  of  the  Jews,  it  must 
be  in  a  sense  that  has  in  no  way  interfered  with  him 
as  governor.  Pilate's  personal  knowledge  should 
therefore  lead  him  to  have  a  personal  interest  in  the 
One  before  him.  ''Sayest  thou  this  of  thyself,  or 
did  others  tell  it  thee  concerning  Me?"  Jesus  ad- 
dresses him  as  a  man  rather  than  a  judge,  while 
Pilate  understands  the  appeal  to  his  manhood,  and 
asks  his  second  question,  "Am  I  a  Jew?"  He  scorns 
the  thought  he  has  himself  suggested  and  like- 
wise the  idea  that  he  might  be  interested  in  the  re- 
ligious teaching  and  life  of  the  Jewish  people.  This 
is  a  trial  and  not  a  conference.     "Thine  own  nation 

318 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

and  the  chief  priests  delivered  Thee  unto  me ;  what 
hast  Thou  done?" 

In  answer  to  Pilate's  questions,  and  in  self-de- 
fense also,  Jesus  asserts  that  His  kingdom  is  not 
of  this  world,  not  a  kingdom  supported  by  force  like 
all  earthly  kingdoms,  not  a  kingdom  that  has  its 
origin  here,  its  history,  and  also  its  end.  He  is  a 
King  by  birth  and  by  appointment,  Who  has  under- 
taken to  establish  truth  and  righteousness  in  the 
earth  and  Who  is  the  real  leader  of  all  who  desire 
holiness  in  character  and  righteousness  in  conduct. 
"Thou  sayest  that  I  am  a  King.  To  this  end  have 
I  been  born,  and  to  this  end  am  I  come  into  the 
world,  that  I  should  bear  witness  unto  the  truth. 
Every  one  that  is  of  the  truth  heareth  my  voice." 
Such  admissions  in  the  presence  of  a  Roman  ruler 
might  become  most  serious,  but  in  this  case  they 
awaken  no  suspicion  of  seditious  designs,  and  hence 
Pilate  publicly  declares,  'T  find  no  crime  in  Him." 

And  now  Pilate  proposes  an  easy  compromise,  or, 
shall  we  say,  an  immediate  settlement  of  the  case 
by  means  of  the  referendum.  He  appeals  to  the 
people  to  deliver  Jesus,  knowing  full  well  His  pop- 
ularity and  knowing  also  the  envy  of  the  Jewish 
rulers.  He  will  pit  the  many  against  the  few  and 
win  the  verdict  he  desires.  He  proposes,  therefore, 
according  to  custom,  to  release  one  at  the  Passover. 
"Will  ye  therefore  that  I  release  unto  you  the  King 
of  the  Jews?"  But  Pilate  has  miscalculated,  and 
the  only  cry  that  greets  his  ears  proclaims  the  re- 
jection of  Jesus,  with  the  alternative  request  that 
another  be  liberated  as  the  popular  choice,  and  thus 

319 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

the  referendum  failed  to  secure  justice  for  the  in- 
nocent and  punishment  for  the  guilty.  His  com- 
promise by  which  the  unproved  charge  against  Jesus 
is  accounted  true,  and  yet  Jesus  is  liberated  by  the 
voice  of  the  people,  failed  also,  and  Jesus  remains 
on  the  hands  of  His  human  judge. 

Passing  over  into  the  nineteenth  chapter,  we  find 
Pilate  deaHng  with  the  Jews  as  well  as  with  Jesus. 
His  case  is  simple,  theirs  is  more  than  complex,  it  is 
complicated.  Three  times  publicly  he  declared,  "I 
find  no  crime  in  Him,"  yet  his  sentence  wins  no 
popular  support  and  by  steady  pressure  their  will 
overrides  and  finally  overrules  the  judge  and  wins 
the  desired  decision.  Pilate  becomes  the  advocate 
of  His  innocence  and  also  the  instrument  of  His 
condemnation  ;  such  is  the  conflict  in  the  mind  of 
this  man  who  had  asked  Jesus,  What  is  truth? 
without  awaiting  an  answer,  or  even  perceiving 
the  truth  as  it  is  revealed  in  the  Person  of  the  One 
Who,  in  that  trying  hour,  stood  before  him,  silent 
and  serene. 

When  Pilate  scourges  Jesus,  according  to  the 
Roman  custom,  and  permits  the  soldiers  to  ridicule 
Him  as  a  self-constituted  King,  he  takes  up  his 
task  again  with  a  more  serious  purpose  to  reach  the 
conclusion  of  a  case  that  is  fast  becoming  more 
serious  to  court  and  accusers,  to  people  and  pris- 
oner. Truth  is  not  an  easy  mark  for  the  indifferent 
nor  an  agreeable  subject  for  the  worldly  wise,  yet 
truth  claims  the  attention  of  every  man,  and  even 
challenges  the  personal  acceptance  or  rejection  of 
each.     No  man  can  place  himself  beyond  its  fron- 

320 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

tiers  and  thus  free  himself  from  its  claims.  No 
man  can  escape  the  influence  of  Jesus,  Whose  pres- 
ence in  human  history  and  Whose  mission  as  man's 
Redeemer  brings  Him  to  the  door  of  every  human 
heart,  where  He  demands  the  serious  attention  of 
every  man.  No  official  position  can  hide  a  man 
from  the  truth  which  appears  in  its  perfection  in 
the  Person  of  Christ. 

Pilate  evidently  desires  to  appease  the  Jews  and 
also  to  liberate  Jesus.  The  judge  becomes  the  ad- 
vocate, but  truth  permits  no  exchange  of  office  or 
compromise  with  evil.  Does  Pilate  appeal  to  their 
compassion  when  he  presents  Him  wearing  the 
crown  of  thorns  and  the  purple  garment,  and  says, 
"Behold,  the  man !''  Their  instant  cry,  "Crucify 
Him,  crucify  Him,"  reveals  at  last  their  implacable 
purpose,  and  yet  he  would  fain  vindicate  his  honor 
and  relieve  himself  of  personal  responsibility  by 
giving  the  prisoner  into  their  power.  "Take  ye  Him 
yourselves,  and  crucify  Him ;  for  I  find  no  crime 
in  Him."  They  assert  in  reply  that  according  to 
their  law  He  ought  to  die  because  He  made  Him- 
self the  Son  of  God.  These  chief  priests  understood 
His  teaching  and  His  claim.  They  were  not  so 
much  in  doubt  as  they  once  thought  they  were.  The 
great  fact  He  asserted  and  demonstrated  was  the 
particular  thing  they  resisted  and  rejected.  Truth 
is  never  a  compromise.  It  is  an  independent  real- 
ity. He  revealed  Himself  to  men,  and  in  the  proc- 
ess of  doing  so,  revealed  them  also  in  their  pre- 
tension and  self-seeking.  He  must  die  therefore, 
because  His  death  is  their  only  possible  vindication. 
321 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

Thus  only  could  their  character  be  cleared  of  sin, 
their  leadership  maintained,  and  their  honor  upheld. 

Fear  had  entered  the  stout  Roman's  heart,  but 
when  he  heard  the  real  charge  of  the  Jews,  which 
reflected  Christ's  own  confession,  "he  was  the  more 
afraid."  As  though  he  had  entered  the  prisoner's 
box  by  way  of  the  bar,  he  comes  again  to  the  judg- 
ment seat,  receiving  no  answer  to  the  question, 
"Whence  art  Thou  ?"  for  how  could  Jesus  give  any 
answer  that  would  satisfy  his  mind?  One  question 
Jesus  answers,  "Knowest  thou  not  that  I  have  power 
to  release  Thee,  and  have  power  to  crucify  Thee?" 
and  answers  it  in  a  way  that  even  Pilate  can  appre- 
ciate. 'Thou  wouldst  have  no  power  against  Me 
except  it  were  given  thee  from  above ;  therefore  he 
that  delivered  Me  unto  thee  hath  the  greater  sin." 
The  prisoner  is  neither  ignorant  nor  unconscious 
of  His  own  standing  before  the  court.  He  even 
knows  the  ultimate  source  of  Pilate's  power  and 
the  greater  sin  of  the  Jews,  as  compared  with  that 
of  Pilate.  No  earthly  ruler  reigns  in  his  own  per- 
sonal right,  and  sin  has  its  degrees  according  to  this 
wonderful  prisoner.  Who  makes  no  plea  for  His 
own  life  aside  from  His  innocence,  Who  exalts 
justice  and  righteousness  and  God,  Who  hears  the 
clamor  of  His  accusers  and  faces  His  judge  without 
fear. 

Jesus  has  made  an  impression  upon  a  hard  Roman 
heart,  for  Pilate  sought  to  release  Him ;  but  the 
Jews  cried  out,  saying,  *Tf  thou  release  this  man 
thou  art  not  Csesar's  friend."  The  fear  of  man 
proves  to  be  more  powerful  than  the  fear  of  God. 
Z22 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

The  love  of  place  overmasters  the  love  of  justice. 
Pilate  must  demonstrate  his  devotion  to  Caesar,  and 
in  this  instance  he  must  do  it  in  keeping  with  the 
Jewish  conception,  even  though  he  would  prefer  to 
own  his  relation  to  God  according  to  the  conception 
of  Jesus.  He  makes  one  last  efifort  to  pacify  a  tur- 
bulent people.  He  sits  in  judgment  before  them 
and  says  in  futile  appeal,  "Behold,  your  King! 
Shall  I  crucify  your  King?"  The  answer  of  the 
chief  priests,  "We  have  no  king  but  Caesar,"  brings 
at  once  the  desired  sentence  of  the  court  and  crys- 
tallizes the  national  life  around  an  earthly  ruler 
whose  power  waned  and  whose  kingdom  passed 
away. 

The  Jews  win  the  sentence  they  desire,  while  the 
judge  still  publicly  protests,  "I  find  no  crime  in 
Him,"  the  true  judgment  of  the  court  which  should 
have  governed  court  and  prosecution.  But  when 
man  sets  his  will  in  absolute  opposition  to  Jesus 
Christ  and  God,  Whom  He  reveals,  even  God,  in 
His  good  providence,  and  Jesus  Christ,  in  His  holy 
love,  respect  that  will  so  far  as  the  execution  of  its 
evil  purpose  is  concerned.  No  man  can  truthfully 
say  to  God,  I  am  not  free,  morally  free,  yet  no 
man  can  measure  arms  with  the  Almighty.  In  this 
test  case,  the  will  of  man  fails  to  overreach  or  over- 
throw the  will  of  God.  The  will  of  man  works  the 
death  of  Christ  in  order  to  eliminate  Him  as  a  Jew- 
ish citizen,  a  religious  teacher,  and  a  world  force. 
The  will  of  God  works  the  death  of  Christ  in  order 
that  Christ  may  be  perfected  as  a  racial  man,  a  re- 
ligious leader,  and  a  world-force  in  human  redemp- 

323 


Christ  at  the  Bar  of  Human  Judgment 

tion.  No  man  and  no  combination  of  men  can 
overrule  the  Judge  of  all  the  earth,  Who  will  do 
right,  Who  loves  righteousness  and  hates  iniquity, 
and  Whose  kingdom  is  an  everlasting  kingdom. 

Forever  Jesus  appears  wherever  He  once  has 
been.  He  still  stands  at  the  bar  of  human  judg- 
ment, and  men  are  free  to  betray  Him  or  deny  Him 
with  results  such  as  we  have  just  seen,  or  even 
try  Him,  reaching  the  old  conclusion,  contradic- 
tory as  it  is,  theoretical  vindication  and  practical 
condemnation.  They  can  survey  the  course  and 
outcome  of  His  life ;  they  can  see  His  influence  in 
the  life  of  the  race,  active  and  uplifting;  they  can 
behold  Him  vindicated  at  the  bar  of  divine  justice 
as  the  Savior  of  the  world,  Who  enables  God  to  be 
just  and  the  justifier  of  all  who  believe.  They  are 
free  to  acknowledge  His  claims  and  then  reject  His 
leadership,  but  they  are  free  also  to  accept  both 
with  a  faith  and  a  fervor  that  answer  His  appeal 
and  that  rest  in  the  sweet  confidence  that  here  is  the 
One  Who  sitteth  King  forever. 


324 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise 
Fulfilled. 

The  acts  of  men  lack  the  majesty  of  the  acts  of 
God.    Men  may  assume  to  sit  in  judgment  upon  the 
Christ  and  condemn  Him  to  die,  but  their  process 
of  law  and  their  sentence  of  death  fail  to  convince 
our   reason  or  command   our  conscience.     As   we 
study  the  men  who  placed  the  Christ  upon  the  cross, 
we  are  convinced  that  they  have  not  risen  to  their 
opportunity,  they  have  not  honored  their  law,  they 
have  not  even  accomplished  their  purpose.     They 
have  worked  within  the  narrow  limits  of  their  own 
prejudice  and  passion.    If  they  Hstened  to  His  won- 
derful  words   of   wisdom,   it   was   to   misinterpret 
them;  if  they  saw  His  mighty  miracles,  it  was  to 
reject  their  testimony;   if  they  looked   upon   Him 
Whom  they  had  pierced,  it  was  only  to  mock  Him. 
Perhaps  the  only  majesty  in  human  character  and 
conduct  is  derived  from  God,  Whose  thoughts  are 
higher   than   our   thoughts   and   Whose   ways   are 
higher  than  our  ways.     Perhaps  the  very  record  of 
man's  condemnation  of  Christ  could  not  have  sur- 
vived the  wrecks  of  time  had  not  the  death  of  Christ 
been  divinely  decreed.    We  speak  of  the  majesty  of 
the  law,  which,  in  the  crises  of  history,  impresses 
us  greatly,  but  let  us  not  forget  the  majesty  of  God, 
A\'ho  makes  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  Him,  Who 
perfects  His  plan  of  human  redemption  unhindered, 
W^ho  so  loved  the  world  that  He  gave  His  only  be- 
325 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

gotten  Son  that  whosoever  believeth  on  Him  should 
not  perish  but  have  eternal  life. 

Here  is  One  Who  never  does  things  by  halves, 
Whose  work  is  perfect,  and  Whose  ways  are  past 
finding  out.  Man's  intelligence  is  not  sufficient  of 
itself  to  discover  God,  but  God's  goodness  is  suf- 
ficient to  provide  that  patient  revelation  of  Himself 
to  all  men  in  all  ages  of  the  world  that  enables  them 
to  know  Him  with  all  the  certainty  such  knowledge 
demands.  God  sends  His  Son  into  the  world  to  live 
for  men,  to  teach  them  truth  and  duty,  to  heal  both 
body  and  mind,  to  demonstrate  His  divine  power 
and  wisdom  and  love  by  acts  of  benevolence  and  by 
a  sinless  example  which  has  no  human  parallel.  But 
this  is  not  enough.  He  must  endure  the  contradic- 
tion of  sinners  and  suffer  as  one  among  them,  suf- 
fer by  reason  of  their  effort  to  teach  Him  and  form 
Him  on  their  human  plan  of  life  and  their  human 
basis  of  being,  while  He,  with  better  reason  and  bet- 
ter grace,  is  trying  to  reconstitute  them  according 
to  the  divine  plan  and  on  the  divine  basis.  He  must 
suffer  betrayal  and  denial  and  trial  at  their  hands, 
and  stand  at  the  bar  of  human  judgment  to  answer 
for  His  life.  He  must  be  condemned  as  an  evil 
doer,  crucified  as  a  criminal,  and  buried  as  one  who 
is  dead,  for  He  must  pass  the  low  portal  of  death 
in  order  to  complete  the  circle  of  human  life  as  it 
is  in  sin  and  in  order  to  lift  it  out  of  its  narrow 
human  horizon  and  give  it  the  sweep  and  compass 
of  the  creative  mind.  The  ascent  of  Solomon  to 
his  magnificent  throne  was  by  means  of  six  steps, 
flanked  by  lifeless  lions,  while  the  descent  of  Jesus 
326 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

to  the  depths  of  human  Hfe  was  by  a  Hke  number 
compassed  about  with  living  men.  He  \Mio  thus 
descends  is  the  One  Who  also  ascends  to  the  high- 
est heaven,  carrying  His  human  nature  into  the  very 
presence  of  God,  and  even  incorporating  it  in  the 
divine  life.  And  thus  we  are  assured  there  is  no 
missing  link  in  this  chain  of  spiritual  life  that  binds 
men  back  to  God. 

Pilate  found  no  crime  in  Jesus,  and  therefore  no 
ground  for  pronouncing  the  death  sentence,  but  he 
found  no  way  to  placate  the  Jewish  rulers  without 
complying  with  their  demands.  Gladly  would  he 
have  transferred  to  them  the  responsibility  of  the 
whole  case  or  found  reason  to  liberate  his  prisoner 
other  than  His  innocence.  He  hesitated  to  condemn 
an  innocent  man,  especially  one  who  claimed  to  be 
the  Son  of  God,  and  who  was  evidently  no  ordinary 
person.  Pilate's  purpose  to  release  Jesus  is  rudely 
halted  by  the  Jewish  rulers  challenging  his  loyalty 
to  Caesar.  To  save  himself,  he  must  surrender 
Christ,  the  common  alternative  which  we  may  call 
the  moral  dilemma.  Once  more  we  see  that  Christ 
is  more  than  an  ordinary  man  thus  to  command  or 
rather  compel  the  moral  choice.  Pilate  taunts  these 
relentless  Jewish  leaders,  but  delivered  Jesus  unto 
them  to  be  crucified. 

''They  took  Jesus  therefore" — now  they  have 
Him  in  their  power,  now  they  propose  to  end  a 
long  contention,  now  they  will  establish  their  au- 
thority and  their  leadership  more  firmly  than  ever. 
They  are  triumphant  at  last  and  no  delay  retards 
their  victim's   death.     Like   an   ordinary   criminal, 

327 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

Jesus  bore  His  cross  to  the  place  of  execution,  or 
until  He  sank  beneath  the  burden.  "He  went  out 
bearing  His  cross  for  Himself."  Like  an  extraordi- 
nary person,  He  was  placed  between  two  robbers 
and  labeled  in  three  languages,  ''J^sus  of  Nazareth, 
the  King  of  the  Jews."  The  objection  of  the  chief 
priests  to  the  form  of  this  inscription  shows  that 
Pilate  is  in  no  temper  to  comply  further  with  their 
demands,  however  reasonable.  He  is  resentful  and 
his  mind  is  ill  at  ease.  This  sturdy  Roman  felt 
an  ever-rising  fear,  if  not  reverence,  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Christ.  Pilate  knew  men.  He  read 
character  with  accuracy  and  facility.  His  opinion 
of  Jesus  contained  his  certainty  of  His  innocence 
before  the  law,  and  we  know  not  how  much  more. 
Evidently  he  looked  upon  Jesus  as  no  ordinary 
person,  no  mere  religious  enthusiast.  Policy,  and 
not  principle,  or  even  personal  preference,  led  him 
on,  step  by  step,  to  his  distasteful  decision,  but  if 
he  yielded  to  the  enemies  of  Jesus,  he,  in  turn,  com- 
pelled them  to  confess  Caesar  as  their  King,  a  con- 
fession that  can  be  retracted  only  by  the  confession 
of  Christ. 

John  does  not  dwell  upon  the  fact  and  manner 
of  the  crucifixion,  but  states  both  in  the  simplest 
terms  and  in  the  briefest  possible  way.  His  state- 
ment is  historic  and  realistic,  but  without  any  effort 
for  rhetorical  effect.  He  appreciates  the  spiritual 
significance  of  this  great  event,  and  records  certain 
attendant  circumstances  which  an  uninspired  his- 
torian might  regard  as  unimportant.  He  tells  us 
that  the  four  soldiers  who  executed  Him  divided 

328 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

His  garments  among  them,  and  for  His  vesture 
they  cast  lots,  ''that  the  Scripture  might  be  ful- 
filled." To  his  mind  this  fact  appears  more  in- 
structive, impressive,  and  convincing  than  the  dark- 
ness and  earthquake  described  elsewhere,  material 
manifestations  of  the  divine  presence  and  power, 
because  the  minute  fulfillment  of  Scripture  after  a 
thousand  years  calls  for  a  minute,  divine  direction, 
and  personal,  divine  agency  among  men  who  have 
no  real  knowledge  of  the  spiritual  meaning  of  Scrip- 
ture and  no  real  desire  to  fulfill  it. 

From  the  cross,  Jesus  commits  His  mother  to  the 
beloved  disciple — a  fact  never  to  be  forgotten  by 
him — thus  resigning,  or  rather  transferring,  to  an- 
other the  sacred  duty  of  personal  protection.  Thus 
His  human  sympathy  remained  with  Him  to  the 
end  of  His  earthly  life  and  left  here  this  last  record 
of  its  tender  care  and  faithful  forethought  on  the 
sensitive  soul  of  His  most  intimate  disciple.  "And 
from  that  hour  the  disciple  took  her  to  his  own 
home."  He  assumes  the  duty,  he  obeys  the  dying- 
request,  and  tells  us  he  obeyed  the  One  Who  had 
been  so  near  to  him,  so  dear,  so  divine,  and  withal, 
so  human.  In  death  as  in  life,  in  suffering  as  in 
service,  Jesus  is  human,  true  yet  tender,  sinless  yet 
sympathetic. 

The  dying  Christ  knows  when  His  work  is  fin- 
ished and  the  Scripture  fulfilled.  His  voluntary 
suffering  filled  up  the  outline  of  prophecy.  This 
voluntary  element  adds  an  essential  factor  which  the 
annual  sacrifices  of  the  Jewish  system  could  not 
furnish.     The  Son  of  God  presents  Himself  as  a 

329 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

personal  volunteer  to  suffer  death  for  man's  sin  and 
also  for  God's  holiness.  As  for  the  sinner,  self- 
surrender  proves  to  be  the  crucial  point,  the  King 
Himself  anticipates  this  fact,  becomes  the  one  great 
example,  and  sets  the  fashion  for  the  court.  The 
New  Testament  as  well  as  the  Old  affords  no  gos- 
pel for  the  disobedient  man.  Christ  has  measured 
Himself  and  His  task,  and  declares  that  He  has  ful- 
filled the  Scriptures,  the  divine  thought  of  man,  and 
finished  His  task  of  human  redemption,  the  elim- 
ination of  sin  and  unbelief,  and  the  elaboration  of 
faith  and  obedience  as  the  perfection  of  the  human 
spirit. 

Jesus  demonstrates  on  the  cross  that  He  is  an  in- 
telligent Savior,  a  merciful  Savior,  a  sufficient  Sav- 
ior. His  moral  judgment  has  not  been  warped  or 
blunted,  His  mind  remains  active  to  the  very  last. 
His  will  is  not  embittered.  He  rightly  reports  the 
need  of  His  body  when  He  says,  "I  thirst."  No 
delirium  settles  down  upon  Him,  no  pain  has  power 
to  dethrone  His  reason,  no  doubt  diverts  Him  from 
the  completion  of  His  chosen  task,  the  salvation  of 
a  sinful  race.  Only  when  He  had  measured  human 
life  in  the  length  and  breadth  and  depth  of  its  need, 
and  then  also  in  the  height  and  reach  of  its  possi- 
bility in  holiness  and  happiness,  does  He  finally  de- 
clare, "It  is  finished."  Then,  and  then  only,  did 
He  bow  His  head  and  give  up  His  spirit. 

His  death  is  His  own  free  act  for  the  salvation 
of  a  free  being.  "I  have  power  to  lay  down  My 
life  and  I  have  power  to  take  it  again.  This  com- 
mandment received  I  from  My  Father."  He  used 
330 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

FT  is  power  thus  divinely  given  for  man's  relief  and 
man's  redemption.  As  man,  he  is  enlisted  for  man, 
and  as  God  he  is  interested  according  to  His  na- 
ture and  His  capacity.  Only  this  divine  Person 
could  fulfill  the  divine  promise  and  thus  complete 
the  divine  plan  and  purpose  which  never  shrivel  like 
autumn  leaves,  but  forever  remain  vital,  challenging 
our  capacity  to  think  God's  thoughts  after  Him. 
Can  any  honest,  earnest  man  look  upon  the  Christ 
Whom  John  describes  and  not  say.  There  is  the 
Savior  of  the  world  ?  There  is  the  Head  of  the  hu- 
man race?  There  is  the  representative  of  God, 
the  chosen  of  God,  the  sent  of  God,  the  Son  of  God, 
Whose  love  anticipates  my  need,  Whose  life  en- 
riches my  own.  Whose  will  should  guide  and  govern 
mine,  Whose  thought  should  illuminate  my  mind? 
Can  any  man  say,  in  the  presence  of  the  cross,  that 
John  is  describing  an  imaginary  and  not  a  real  be- 
ing? That  John  is  writing  fiction  and  not  history? 
Then  let  him  take  the  other  choice  and  accept  the 
Christ  as  being  just  what  John  declares  Him  to  be, 
in  life  and  death,  the  Son  of  man  and  the  Son  of 
God,  man  made  in  the  image  of  God,  and  God  mani- 
fest in  the  flesh. 

Divine  Providence  is  still  operative  and  the 
throne  of  God  is  still  occupied.  The  Jews  request 
Pilate  to  order  the  breaking  of  the  legs  of  the  three 
sufferers  on  the  three  crosses  in  order  to  hasten 
death,  and,  as  a  consequence,  the  removal  of  their 
bodies.  Amid  their  mental  and  moral  conflicts  they 
have  maintained  their  regard  for  the  sanctity  of  the 
Sabbath.     They  think,  as  they  have  always  thought 

331 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

and  as  they  must  continue  to  think  unless  and  until 
some  master  mind  breaks  the  spell  of  their  delusion. 
The  spirit  of  man  may  incarcerate  itself  within  the 
solid  walls  of  custom,  or  even  embalm  itself  with 
the  spices  and  wrappings  of  some  human  system  of 
religious  teaching.  Yet  God  lives,  and  ever  and 
anon  liberates  the  man  who  grows  restive  under  un- 
natural restraint  and  really  seeks  spiritual  freedom. 
God  overrules  the  prayer  of  men  in  fulfillment  of 
His  Word.  The  soldiers  break  the  legs  of  the  first 
and  the  other  one,  but  Jesus  was  dead  already,  and 
*'not  a  bone  of  Him  was  broken,"  but  His  side  was 
pierced  by  one  of  the  soldiers,  and  thus  Scripture 
was  fulfilled  by  the  exceptional  act,  as  before  by 
the  exceptional  omission.  ''They  looked  on  Him 
Whom  they  had  pierced."  Providence  finds  room 
for  the  coarsest  natures  as  well  as  the  most  refined, 
and  the  two  may  touch  at  a  spear's  point  and  then 
separate  perhaps  forever. 

The  crucified  Christ  has  devoted  friends  as  well 
as  bitter  enemies.  As  the  hatred  of  His  enemies 
subsides,  the  devotion  of  His  friends  rises  again, 
and  they  claim  the  body  for  burial.  Was  Pilate 
glad  to  transfer  the  body  to  them?  Was  he  regret- 
ful as  well  as  resentful?  By  his  permission  they 
took  the  body  from  the  cross,  "bound  it  in  linen 
cloths  with  spices  and  laid  it  in  a  new  tomb  wherein 
was  never  man  yet  laid."  They  know  the  Christ  is 
dead  and  must  be  buried.  The  tomb  and  not  the 
home  must  be  the  resting  place  of  all  that  remains, 
the  cold  and  lifeless  body.  Yet  we  may  wonder 
why  they  did  not  bear  the  body  of  Jesus  to  the  home 

332 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

in  hope  of  His  promised  resurrection.  The  only 
answer  is  that  this  hope  seems  to  have  died  when 
Jesus  breathed  His  last,  and  only  lived  again  when 
Jesus  breathed  life  into  it  after  His  triumphant 
resurrection.  Men  cannot  anticipate  God.  The 
risen  Christ  alone  can  fill  up  the  outlines  of  His 
own  thinking. 

Jesus  dies  upon  the  cross  according  to  His  own 
interpretation  of  the  divine  plan  and  His  own  state- 
ment of  the  divine  purpose.  He  lived  a  real,  hu- 
man life,  and  died  a  real,  human  death.  In  all 
points  tempted  like  as  we  are,  He  was  yet  without 
sin,  and  sinless  He  suffered  death,  the  penalty  of 
sin,  that  that  penalty  might  no  longer  be  exacted  of 
any  man  who  believes  in  Him,  whose  life  thus  be- 
comes a  life  of  obedience  to  God,  and  whose  death 
therefore  becomes  essentially  sinless.  He  enters 
into  real  relations  with  man  in  order  to  bring  man 
into  salvable  relations  with  God.  The  cross  has 
become  the  most  significant  of  earthly  symbols,  not 
because  it  involved  the  keenest  physical  sufifering, 
but  because  it  represents  the  most  effective  power 
to  subdue  and  purify  the  heart,  and  especially  be- 
cause it  stands  for  Christ's  complete  identification 
with  sinful  man.  He  fulfills  the  Scriptures  under 
the  immediate  direction  of  divine  Providence.  Hu- 
man agents  gather  about  Him,  divine  beings  min- 
ister to  Him;  both  are  interested  and  active,  and 
by  conflict  and  co-operation,  by  evil  purposes  and 
compromising  acts  of  men,  by  the  overruling  will 
and  wisdom  of  God,  One  is  placed  in  our  midst, 
One  Whom  John  would  have  all  men  call  the  Son 

333 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

of  God,  their  perfect  and  all-sufficient  Savior.  We 
read  prophecy  in  history  as  it  is  here  enacted  before 
our  eyes.  The  God  Who  is  above  all  history,  has 
entered  history  in  the  Person  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Henceforth,  He  will  rule  it  in  the  interests  of  His 
kingdom,  and  men  a-re  invited  to  read  history, 
present  and  future,  with  reference  to  Him.  H 
we  are  compelled  to  see  man  as  he  is  by  nature, 
limited  as  well  as  lifted  by  education  and  lured  by 
honor,  let  us  also  behold  him  as  we  see  him  in 
Christ,  man  in  moral  harmony  with  God  and  unified 
within  himself,  man  in  the  perfection  of  spiritual 
life,  man  in  his  real  goodness  and  greatness,  man 
in  manhood  and  in  ministry,  man  in  his  divine  life 
and  liberty,  man  enshrined  in  the  mind  and  heart 
of  God. 

Have  we  lingered  about  the  cross  of  Christ  long 
enough  to  have  learned  its  meaning?  Long  enough 
to  have  looked  into  the  conscious  spirit  of  Christ 
and  then  into  our  own?  Nowhere  else  will  we 
learn  so  well  the  sinfulness  of  sin,  the  power  of 
sin,  and  the  penalty  of  sin,  or  the  gift  and  power 
and  perfection  of  the  salvation  wrought  out  by 
Jesus  Christ.  Personal  experience  supplemented 
by  the  lessons  of  a  superintending  Providence  must 
aid  us  in  mastering  the  meaning  of  His  death  and 
thus  prepare  us  to  appreciate  His  promised  resur- 
rection. Only  by  a  divine  discipline  can  men  be 
taught  to  keep  step  with  divine  Providence  in  the 
progressive  unfolding  of  God's  gracious  plan  of 
human  redemption  as  it  has  its  application  in  every 
age. 

334 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

As  a  Christian  historian,  a  spiritual  leader,  and 
a  religious  thinker,  John  presents  these  darker 
scenes  in  the  life  of  Jesus  in  their  native  colors  and 
in  their  true  perspective.  He  describes  the  death  of 
Jesus  as  an  historic  event,  a  religious  truth,  and 
a  logical  necessity.  He  fits  the  death  of  Christ 
into  the  divine  plan  as  this  was  declared  by  the 
prophets  and  by  Christ  Himself.  He  descends  with 
Jesus  to  this  lowest  level  of  His  life  without  en- 
dangering his  own  faith  in  His  deity.  Nor  does 
he  ever  suspect  that  death  has  in  any  sense  de- 
graded his  Hero.  He  offers  no  explanation  con- 
cerning the  death  of  a  Person  Whom  he  considers 
both  human  and  divine.  He  writes  as  an  eye-wit- 
ness who  was  sure  of  the  facts  he  states  and  as  one 
who  was  far  enough  away  from  these  impressive 
scenes  to  write  an  impartial  record.  He  tells  less 
than  he  knows,  and  knows  nothing  that  would  con- 
tradict or  even  modify  what  he  has  told. 

This  Galilean  fisherman,  this  aggressive  son  of 
Zebedee,  who  became  a  modest  apostle  of  Jesus 
Christ  and  the  inspired  author  of  the  fourth  Gos- 
pel, has  drawn  us  close  to  Christ,  close  to  His  cross, 
close  to  His  dead  body,  close  to  His  borrowed  tomb. 
Suffering  still  has  its  mystery  and  death  its  terrors. 
Disappointment  and  grief  are  not  yet  displaced  by 
the  victory  of  the  resurrection  and  the  joy  it 
brought  to  many  anxious'  hearts.  Men  must  see 
what  this  faithful  witness  saw  before  they  can  ap- 
preciate the  next  movement  in  the  wonderful  proc- 
ess by  which  a  world's  Redeemer  is  perfected. 
Death  adds  no  glory  to  the  Person  of  Christ,  but 
335 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

it  unveils  the  glory  that  was  already  there,  permit- 
ting it  to  break  forth  from  many  a  rift  and  angle. 
Behold  Him  Who  cannot  die  as  a  criminal  without 
revealing  His  moral  majesty  and  His  saving  power! 
Never  man  spake,  never  man  lived,  never  man  died 
like  this  man,  with  such  an  appeal  to  the  human 
heart,  such  a  power  to  answer  its  utmost  need,  such 
a  promise  of  life  and  leadership  awaiting  its  ful- 
fillment. The  darkness  which  gathers  about  Him 
becomes  Hght,  and  the  shadows  flee  before  the 
glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  His  Anointed.  The 
darkest  spot  on  earth  becomes  the  brightest  because 
He  Who  is  the  light  of  the  world  once  rested  there. 

Our  faithful  historian  would  enable  us  to  see  his 
Hero  even  in  His  humiliation.  He  wants  us  to 
see  Him  as  He  is  reflected  in  the  minds  of  men 
who  are  indifferent  or  hostile,  and  who  are  com- 
pelled to  think  of  Him  and  act  as  they  will.  He 
invites  us  to  see  Him  through  his  own  mind  and 
heart  and  spirit,  which  have  been  liberated  by  the 
truth  and  illuminated  by  the  Spirit  of  God  that  it 
may  be  his  crowning  glory  to  tell  a  dying  world  of 
Him  Who  was  crucified,  dead,  and  buried  in  ful- 
fillment of  the  promise  made  in  the  earlier  dispen- 
sation. 

The  crucifixion  is  psychologically  established  be- 
cause it  holds  a  place  of  prime  importance  in  the 
life  and  in  the  work  of  our  Lord.  It  must,  there- 
fore, have  a  like  importance  in  the  life  of  men. 
Hence  we  are  made  to  see  just  how  it  came  about 
in  history,  how  the  innocent  One  was  caused  to 
suffer  the  extreme  penalty  of  the  law,  how  the 
336 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

self-seeking  Jew  and  the  self-confident  Roman 
combined  to  accomplish  this  result,  and  how  the 
redemptive  purpose  of  God  was  carried  to  its  com- 
pletion. Men  are  free  in  thought  and  action,  and 
yet  God  is  supreme  in  both.  He  is  supreme  in  wis- 
dom and  love,  in  justice  and  mercy.  His  suprem- 
acy appears  at  this  crisis,  not  in  an  attitude  of 
dictation,  but  in  the  manifest  purpose  to  save.  Upon 
Him  Who  thus  enters  man's  life  and  assumes  man's 
responsibility  devolves  the  moral  obligation  of  giv- 
ing man  law  even  as  it  is  His  pleasure  to  give  him 
life.  This  law  must  be  suited  to  this  life,  always  ex- 
pressing it  and  never  limiting  its  normal  develop- 
ment. It  must  be  written  in  the  mind  and  heart, 
and  not  on  tables  of  stone.  It  must  express  the 
mind  of  God  and  illuminate  the  mind  of  man.  Love, 
supreme  love  to  God,  with  which  must  always  be 
associated  an  equalizing  love  for  fellow-man,  an- 
swers all  the  conditions.  It  is  both  law  and  life 
and  we  behold  it  as  it  is  visualized  in  the  crucified 
Christ. 

The  ideas  and  the  ideals  of  the  first  disciples  were 
radically  changed  by  the  death  of  Christ.  Material- 
istic conceptions  of  the  person  and  w^ork  of  the  Mes- 
siah were  finally  effaced.  The  disciples  ceased  to 
think  of  the  kingdom  of  God  as  an  earthly  kingdom. 
They  freed  themselves  from  Jewish  misconceptions 
of  prophetic  teaching  and  human  dreams  of  earthly 
empire.  They  were  literally  compelled  to  think  in 
terms  of  Christ's  thought  and  life.  They  re- 
adjusted themselves  on  the  new  basis  and  soon 
discovered  that  no  loss  was  sustained  and  no 
2,Z7 


Crucified,  Dead,  and  Buried,  or  the  Promise  Fulfilled 

vacuum  encountered.  As  old  things  passed  away, 
behold  all  things  became  new  and  all  were  rightly 
centered,  for  now,  "all  things  are  of  God  Who 
reconciled  us  to  Himself  through  Christ." 

As  a  religious  truth,  based  on  a  historic  fact,  the 
crucifixion  of  Christ  meets  the  deepest  need  of  sin- 
ful man.  It  revealed  sin  in  its  real  nature,  opposi- 
tion to  law  and  hence  opposition  to  the  Author  of 
law,  but  it  also  revealed  the  love  of  God  which 
undertakes  to  reconstitute  and  revitalize  man.  If 
forgiveness  requires,  as  has  been  said,  "a  perfect 
knowledge  of  the  offense  and  a  perfect  restoration 
of  love,"  then  the  basis  for  forgiveness  has  been 
securely  laid  by  the  vicarious  death  of  Christ.  John 
knows  no  other  and  Paul  asserts  that  no  other  is 
possible,  "other  foundation  can  no  man  lay  than 
that  which  is  laid."  Man's  moral  judgment  finds 
complete  satisfaction  in  the  crucified  Christ,  while 
his  rational  nature  obtains,  through  Him,  impor- 
tant data  and  needed  orientation. 

Let  us  not  seek,  in  the  supposed  progress  of 
theology,  to  escape  the  idea  that  the  crucifixion  has 
its  Godward  aspect.  Rather  let  us  frankly  confess 
that  the  mind  of  God  finds  therein  complete  ex- 
pression respecting  sin  and  obedience.  His  method 
with  men  is  neither  arbitrary  nor  legalistic 
for  the  sufficient  reason  that  in  His  being  and 
in  His  life  God  is  neither.  In  the  death  of  Christ 
upon  the  cross,  God  expresses  His  disapproval  of 
sin.  He  makes  known  His  justice  as  well  as  His 
mercy,  and  thereby  convinces  us  that  He  is  just 
and  yet  the  justifier  of  all  who  believe  in  Christ,  all 

338 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

who  claim  His  mercy  while  acknowledging  His 
justice.  Prophets  foretold  the  death  of  the  Mes- 
siah because  it  is  essential  in  the  economy  of  grace 
and  historians  record  it  for  the  same  reason.  En- 
acted at  Jerusalem,  the  center  of  Hebrew  worship, 
it  emptied  the  old  order  of  its  deep  religious  sig- 
nificance and  opened  the  way  for  the  coming  of 
the  Roman  legions.  It  gave  religion  a  new  con- 
tent and  changed  the  very  idea  and  theory  of  life. 
It  broke  the  spell  of  evil  which  rested  upon  the 
spirit  of  man  and  accentuated  the  invitations  of 
grace.  It  universalized  revealed  religion  so  effect- 
ually that  the  Christian  centuries  present  to  our 
view  a  mighty  concourse  of  men  from  east  and 
west,  north  and  south,  men  who  bowed  low  before 
the  Crucified  in  humble  confession  of  their  sin  and 
in  earnest  acceptance  of  His  salvation ;  who  entered 
the  life  in  which  they  were  rightly  related  to  God 
and  man;  who  understood  what  God  meant,  when, 
on  their  behalf,  "He  made  Him  to  be  sin  Who  knew 
no  sin  that  they  might  become  the  righteousness  of 
God  in  Him" ;  who  cheerfully  accepted  the  disci- 
pline of  this  present  life  by  which  they  learned  to 
appreciate  "the  mercy  that  endureth  forever,"  and 
to  regard  with  reverence  the  majesty  that  proceeds 
from  the  throne  of  God. 


339 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

The  Resurrection  of  Jesus  and  the  Life 
Beyond  Death. 

The  two  subjects  we  have  here  linked  together 
^or  study  are  worthy  of  separate  treatment,  but  the 
two  are  so  intimately  related  in  the  gospel  narra- 
tive that  we  have  deemed  it  best  to  consider  them 
in  'a  single  chapter.  Without  the  resurrection  of 
Jesus  we  would  know  very  little  of  the  life  beyond 
death,  and  without  that  life  we  would  be  left  with- 
out conclusive  proof  of  His  resurrection.  His  death 
issues  in  His  resurrection,  and  His  resurrection 
marks  His  entrance  into  that  life  which  is  not  sub- 
ject to  death.  Here  His  humanity  abides  in  the 
perfection  of  its  powers,  and  His  deity  acts  with  a 
corresponding  freedom  and  authority. 

According  to  His  own  statement,  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  was  offered  to  His  opposers  as  the  one 
great  proof  of  His  Messiahship,  and,  as  a  conse- 
quence, of  His  sinless  character.  His  power  over 
evil.  His  divine  life  and  leadership.  It  opens  to 
all  men  the  life  beyond  death,  the  life  in  which  the 
spirit  is  free  from  all  evil  and  all  earthly  limita- 
tions. It  enables  men  to  see  that  Jesus  Christ  is 
ever  the  same,  ever  true  to  Himself,  always  able 
to  convey  His  thoughts  to  men,  and  always  willing 
to  direct  their  actions.  He  has  passed  the  gates 
of  death  and  yet  has  lost  nothing,  nothing  of  His 
human  nature,  which  abides  in  all  its  elements  and 

340 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

aspirations,  while  in  the  totality  of  His  being  He 
stands  between  God  and  man,  God's  self-revelation 
to  man  and  man's  intercessor  with  God. 

Among  the  multitudes  of  earth  and  the  myriads 
of  heaven,  Jesus  Christ  is  easily  distinguishable. 
His  is  the  greatness  of  character,  the  sovereignty 
of  righteousness.  A  scepter  of  uprightness  is  the 
scepter  of  His  kingdom.  His  love  of  righteousness 
and  His  hatred  of  iniquity  have  found  their  perfect 
expression  in  His  life  and  death  and  life  again,  all- 
vicarious,  all-atoning,  all-redemptive.  Therefore, 
God  hath  anointed  Him  with  the  oil  of  gladness 
above  His  fellows,  and  hath  given  Him  a  name 
which  is  above  every  name. 

His  is  the  greatness  of  goodness,  the  greatness  of 
God,  and  this  essential  greatness  cannot  be  con- 
cealed even  in  those  darkest  hours  of  His  humili- 
ation. His  is  not  the  greatness  of  genius,  that  calmly 
awaits  its  opportunity  and  then  bursts  forth  with 
sudden  and  unexpected  glory,  nor  yet  the  greatness 
that  pales  in  obscurity  unless  surrounded  with  its 
appropriate  accessories,  but  rather  that  essential, 
that  personal  greatness  which  is  an  attribute  of  His 
being  and  a  constant  fact  of  His  life.  He  always 
appears  great  because  He  always  is  great,  great 
in  sympathy  and  soul  and  purpose,  great  as  man  is 
great,  and  great  as  God  only  is  great.  No  demiurge 
can  find  room  between  God  and  man  to  trouble  our 
faith  or  afflict  our  philosophy  if  we  have  an  ade- 
quate knowledge  of  Jesus  Christ. 

Heathen  deities  afford  us  no  aid,  by  comparison 
or  contrast,  in  interpreting  the   Person  of  Christ. 

341 


I'he  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

Sculptor  and  painter  know  the  futility  of  casting 
Him  in  heroic  mold.  Historian  and  philosopher 
study  His  character  and  personality  as  the  source 
and  center  of  His  greatness.  He  exists  from 
within  and  not  from  without.  The  material  world 
ministers  to  Him,  but  does  not  make  Him.  The 
mind  of  man  conceives  Him,  but  does  not  create 
Him.  He  offers  Himself  to  men  to  be  known  and 
loved  and  obeyed,  and  these  become  the  open  paths 
of  approach  to  this  wonderful  Person  Who  stands 
out  in  history  in  singular  greatness  and  yet  in  sweet 
simplicity  inviting  men  to  come  to  Him  and  at- 
tracting them  alike  by  His  humanity  and  His  di- 
vinity. If  we  have  really  seen  Him  as  He  appeared 
in  that  first  century  of  the  Christian  era,  and  as  John 
presents  Him  to  our  minds  and  hearts,  then  we  are 
prepared  to  see  and  recognize  Him  in  the  subse- 
quent centuries  as  the  throbbing  heart  of  histor}'. 

That  first  visit  to  the  tomb  by  Mary  Magdalene, 
"early  while  it  was  yet  dark,"  and  then  the  visit 
of  Peter  and  John  as  a  result  of  her  report,  reveal 
a  personal  interest  and  devotion  such  as  we  should 
expect,  but  disclose  also  a  state  of  mind  which 
sadly  needs  explanation,  "For  as  yet  they  knew  not 
the  Scripture  that  He  must  rise  again  from  the 
dead."  Mary  had  evidently  come  to  the  rock-hewn 
tomb  as  to  the  grave  of  a  friend,  but  when  she 
found  the  tomb  open,  she  quickly  concluded  that 
the  Jews  or  the  Romans  had  removed  the  body, 
depositing  it  she  knew  not  where. 

Such  a  report  would  be  quite  sufficient  to  bring 
Peter  and  John  to  the  tomb  to  investigate  for  them- 

342 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospet 

selves.  They  came  in  haste,  but  they  examine  the 
tomb  at  leisure.  They  enter  and  find  "the  linen 
cloths  lying  and  the  napkin  that  was  upon  His 
head,  not  lying  with  the  linen  cloths,  but  rolled  up 
in  a  place  by  itself."  They  are  thinking  of  the 
facts  before  them,  the  incidents  that  become  evi- 
dence, the  order  in  these  wrappings  that  argues  not 
merely  the  absence,  but  rather  the  resurrection,  of 
the  body  of  Jesus,  the  restoration  of  Jesus  in  the 
life  and  unity  of  His  wonderful  personality.  The 
other  disciple  who  came  first  to  the  tomb  saw  and 
believed  ''that  Jesus  had  risen  from  the  dead,"  thus 
modestly  does  John  tell  of  His  dawning  faith.  One 
at  least,  and  perhaps  both,  are  convinced,  and  have 
no  further  duty  there,  and  "so  the  disciples  went 
away  again  unto  their  own  home." 

They  believed,  not  because  of  the  Scriptures 
which  seemed  so  plain,  nor  even  the  teaching  of 
Jesus,  which  came  closer  still,  but  because  the 
event  made  its  own  impression  and  the  truth  slowly 
dawned  upon  them.  The  religion  of  Jesus  is  not 
a  religion  of  force  and  authority,  but  of  intelligence 
and  reason.  It  offers  scientific  evidence  to  each  in- 
vestigator, and  thus  affords  a  secure  starting  point 
for  Christian  faith.  Seeing  and  knowing  and  be- 
lieving, these  are  personal  acts  which  individualize 
Christian  faith  and  Christian  life.  Mary  sees  for 
Mary,  Peter  for  Peter,  and  John  for  John,  and  to 
each  one  the  risen  Christ  Himself  is  the  only  sat- 
isfactory and  conclusive  proof  of  the  resurrection. 
The  empty  tomb  contains  not  the  body.  They  make 
no  search  for  it.    The  only  rational  conclusion  opens 

343 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

into  religious  faith  and  presently  finds  its  complete 
confirmation  in  the  established  fact  that  He  is  risen. 

Mary's  first  explanation  of  His  disappearance  on 
natural  grounds,  "they  have  taken  away  the  Lord 
out  of  the  tomb  and  we  know  not  where  they  have 
laid  Him,"  was  not  adopted  by  Peter  and  John. 
As  they  observe  the  linen  cloths  showing  where  the 
body  lay,  they  come  to  the  conclusion  that  no  hu- 
man hands  removed  them.  They  have  a  different 
explanation  of  the  facts  before  them.  Their  minds 
have  been  lifted  up  by  new  and  unexpected  facts, 
and  while  they  see  these,  they  are  looking  far 
beyond. 

But  Mary  lingers  at  the  tomb  where  last  she  saw 
the  face  of  Jesus  chilled  and  unresponsive  and  fixed 
in  death.  What  else  could  she  do  but  stoop  down 
again  and  look  into  the  tomb,  so  empty  and  yet  so 
suggestive?  There  she  sees  through  her  tears  ''two 
angels  in  white  sitting,  one  at  the  head,  and  one  at 
the  feet,  where  the  body  of  Jesus  had  lain."  She 
must  have  more  evidence,  and  more  evidence  is 
given.  The  solemn  statement  in  the  burial  ritual, 
''in  the  midst  of  life  we  are  in  death,"  was  here 
reversed  and  in  the  midst  of  death  she  was  in  life. 
These  angels,  who,  by  their  position,  show  their 
interest  in  Jesus,  show  their  interest  in  ]\Iary  by 
their  friendly  inquiry,  "Woman,  why  weepest 
thou?"  Her  answer  is  based  on  Jie7'  theory  and 
not  on  their  knowledge.  To  them  there  is  no  cause 
for  tears.  She  turned  herself  back,  as  though  some 
one  was  near  at  the  other  side,  and  beheld  Jesus 
standing  and  knew  not  that  it  was  Jesus.     His  two 

344 


The^  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

questions,  "Woman,  why  weepest  thou?"  ''Whom 
seekest  thou  ?"  call  forth  an  answer  in  harmony  with 
her  first  explanation.  But  now  He  speaks  her 
name,  "i\Iar}%"  with  familiar  tone  and  accent.  She 
turned  herself  to  address  Him  as  Teacher,  in  the 
Hebrew  language  and  in  personal  recognition,  a 
memorable  moment  when  the  risen  Christ  conveyed 
to  her  mind  for  the  first  time  the  fact  and  thought 
and  meaning  of  His  resurrection. 

But  where  was  the  intuition  universally  accorded 
to  woman?  Where  was  her  memory  of  Christ's 
teaching?  Where  was  her  love  for  Him  so  long 
pre-eminent?  All  were  there,  but  all  were  inoper- 
ative. How  could  intuition  or  memory  or  even  love 
rise  unaided  to  this  new  level  of  life?  How  could 
they  define  the  risen  Christ  as  their  proper  object? 
Mary  was  not  required  to  do  what  she  could  not 
do.  The  risen  Christ  offers  His  welcome  aid,  and 
His  personal  presence  calls  forth  her  personal  de- 
votion on  the  higher  plane  of  life.  She  is  still 
teachable,  affectionate,  obedient,  and  He  is  still  her 
Lord  and  Master.  "Touch  me  not"  is  His  first 
word  of  command  and  restraint  to  the  one  who 
first  saw  and  conversed  with  Him  after  His  resur- 
rection. He  assigns  His  reason  as  to  an  intelligent 
friend,  "for  I  am  not  yet  ascended  unto  the  Father," 
His  "I  am"  reflecting  the  present  tense  of  the  divine 
self-knowledge  and  His  return  to  the  Father  point- 
ing to  a  relatiott  that  supersedes  all  others.  You 
want  to  do  something  for  me,  and  this  you  can  do, 
"go  unto  My  brethren  and  say  unto  them,  I  ascend 
unto  My  Father  and  your  Father,  and  My  God  and 
345 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

your  God/'  He  is  acting  in  their  interest  while 
He  is  perfecting  His  relation  to  the  Father,  and 
His  relation  to  His  disciples  will  be  renewed  on 
this  new  plane  of  life  and  being.  The  relation  of 
the  disciples  to  the  Father  and  to  God  is  expressed 
in  the  same  terms  as  His  own,  while  His  own  stands 
by  itself  as  an  independent  fact  which  precedes 
theirs  and  becomes  the  foundation  of  their  relation 
to  God  as  Father.  His  present  teaching  fits  His 
former  teaching  with  convincing  accuracy.  In 
mind  and  heart  He  is  the  same  to  Mary,  if  in  body 
He  seemed  so  different  that  at  first  she  failed  to 
identify  Him.  Her  interview  ended  and  her  duty 
began.  Her  report  to  the  disciples  whom  Jesus 
now  calls  "My  brethren"  has  in  it  elements  of  in- 
ternal evidence  that  support  its  truth.  Mary  brings 
her  report,  but  prefaces  it  with  her  own  testimony, 
"I  have  seen  the  Lord." 

Time  is  a  necessary  factor  in  human  life,  and  yet 
events  may  unfold  rapidly  if  they  come  in  their 
proper  order.  On  the  evening  of  this  same  day, 
the  first  day  of  the  week,  Jesus  appeared  to  the 
assembled  disciples  when  the  doors  were  shut  where 
the  disciples  were  for  fear  of  the  Jews,  whose  en- 
mity and  active  opposition  were  not  allayed.  He 
entered  while  the  doors  were  shut,  or  shall  we  say 
in  the  words  of  John,  "He  came  and  stood  in  the 
midst,"  an  act  which  ought  to  have  identified  Him 
in  that  little  group.  His  coming  and  His  presence 
are  the  facts  emphasized.  He  is  not  conditioned  by 
material  substance  or  natural  law,  even  though  He 
appears  in  His  natural  body,  presents  it  for  their 

346 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

inspection,  and  thus  demonstrates  to  them  that  it 
is  the  same  body  that  suffered  the  wounds  of  the 
cross.  He  is  a  marked  man,  Whom  they  and  all 
men  may  assuredly  know.  His  first  words  to  them, 
"Peace  be  unto  you,"  they  had  heard  Him  speak 
often  before,  but  now  these  words  have  a  new  sig- 
nificance as  they  fall  from  the  lips  of  the  Prince  of 
peace.  The  disciples  are  invited  to  convince  them- 
selves that  they  have  in  their  midst  the  same  Per- 
son they  previously  knew  and  loved.  They  are 
given  opportunity  to  complete  their  knowledge  of 
Him,  while  His  knowledge  of  them  had  never  been 
destroyed  or  even  interrupted.  He  presents  the 
evidence  they  require,  while  they  readjust  their 
thought  and  theory  to  fit  this  new  fact  of  spiritual 
life,  the  fact  of  resurrection,  and  the  life  beyond 
death,  the  life  that  is  free  from  the  guilt  and  power 
of  sin,  and  hence  also  from  its  consequences  and  its 
perpetual  penalty,  the  life  which  the  risen  Christ  is 
even  now  enabling  them  to  enter.  Thus  they  knew 
Him  as  risen  from  the  dead  and  "the  disciples  there- 
fore were  glad  when  they  saw  the  Lord." 

Only  the  risen  Christ  can  establish  the  resur- 
rection as  a  historic  event  and  as  a  religious  truth; 
He  alone  can  fill  out  His  own  teaching  concerning 
Himself  and  the  outlines  of  prophecy  in  which  the 
work  of  the  Messiah  is  anticipated ;  He  alone  can 
respond  to  the  longings  of  the  human  heart  for  a 
divine  life  and  a  true  immortality.  The  risen  Christ, 
the  spiritual  Christ,  must  somehow  inspire  and  spir- 
itualize men,  men  of  time  and  earth,  men  of  here 
and  now,  so  that  they  may  know  Him,  not  after 

347 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

the  flesh,  but  after  the  spirit.  His  earth-life  is 
almost  ended,  and  their  Spirit-life  should  begin  at 
once,  for  this  is  the  real  place  of  recognition.  When 
His  disciples  had  recognized  Him  and  knew  Him 
once  more  as  the  Lord,  He  said  to  them,  'Teace  be 
unto  you :  as  the  Father  hath  sent  me,  even  so  send 
I  you."  They  share  His  inner  life  of  peace  and 
likewise  also  His  work  among  men.  No  ceremony 
ensues.  No  ritual  makes  His  command  more  im- 
pressive. The  risen  Christ  requires  no  adventitious 
aids  in  order  to  bestow  His  peace  or  commission 
His  disciples  for  their  mighty  task. 

He  breathed  on  them  as  their  present  source  of 
spiritual  blessing  and  said,  "Receive  ye  the  Holy 
Spirit:  whosesoever  sins  ye  forgive,  they  are  for- 
given unto  them ;  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain,  they 
are  retained."  The  spiritual  work  they  are  called 
upon  to  do  can  be  done  by  men  who  have  received 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  by  no  others.  This  is  the  next 
step  in  their  personal  preparation.  Receive  ye,  for 
the  Holy  Spirit  is  now  ofifered  to  them  even  as 
Christ  offered  Himself  to  them  and  has  been  re- 
ceived by  them.  Even  so  should  they  receive  the 
Holy  Spirit,  under  Whose  divine  wisdom  and  im- 
pulse they  are  to  undertake  and  accomplish  their 
spiritual  work.  As  believers  in  Jesus,  as  sent  by 
Him,  as  led  by  the  Holy  Spirit  and  inspired  by 
Him,  they  can  even  minister  God's  forgiveness  to 
men,  or  when  required,  refuse  it  in  the  same  right. 
This  is  the  real  field  of  their  activity — the  mind,  the 
character,  the  spirit  of  man  sin-bound  and  sin- 
burdened,  yet  salvable  and  capable  of  entering  the 

348 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

spiritual  kingdom,  knowing  the  saving  power  and 
rejoicing  in  the  personal  presence  of  the  risen 
Christ. 

In  his  old  age,  and  after  the  testing  of  experience, 
the  Apostle  John  offers  no  comment  and  thinks  of 
no  criticism  concerning  this  divine  program.  Sin 
must  be  eliminated  from  human  life  by  being  elim- 
inated from  the  human  mind  and  heart.  Sin  is  the 
bar  to  obedience  and  the  attitude  and  state  that  God 
cannot  bless  or  approve.  Pardon  is  possible,  and 
the  life  divine,  the  life  spiritual,  the  life  eternal. 
The  ministry  of  forgiveness  is  committed  to  the 
Church  as  its  perpetual  inheritance  from  Him.  If 
atonement  for  sin  is  essential  in  the  work  of  Christ, 
the  application  of  that  atonement  is  essential  in  the 
work  of  the  Christian  Church.  If  salvation  must 
be  wrought  into  the  life  and  consciousness  of  God, 
so  must  it  be  made  real  in  the  consciousness  and  life 
of  every  man  who  seeks  salvation  in  Christ.  If 
God  comes  to  man's  gate  by  way  of  the  cross,  man 
must  come  to  God's  gate  by  the  same  appointed 
path. 

But  Thomas,  one  of  the  twelve,  was  not  with 
them  when  Jesus  first  manifested  Himself  to  them. 
How  regretful  he  must  have  been  we  are  not  told, 
but  how  doubtful  and  unbelieving  he  was  forms 
part  of  the  history  and  the  psychology  of  the  res- 
urrection, a  part  that  was  perhaps  not  recorded  un- 
til after  his  death.  "The  other  disciples,  therefore, 
said  unto  him,  We  have  seen  the  Lord.  But  he 
said  unto  them.  Except  I  shall  see  in  His  hands  the 
print  of  the  nails  and  put  my  finger  into  the  print 
349 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

of  the  nails,  and  put  my  hand  into  His  side,  I  will 
not  believe."  He  refused  to  believe,  or  shall  we  say, 
he  was  not  able  to  believe  so  great  a  fact  on  the 
combined  testimony  of  his  fellow-disciples,  but  re- 
quired the  same  evidence  they  had  received  in  order 
to  satisfy  his  mind — the  print  of  the  nails  in  His 
hands  and  the  wound  in  His  side,  the  marks  of 
Jesus  which  Thomas  could  not  forget  in  three  days, 
however  dark,  however  long.  If,  indeed.  He  is 
alive,  He  will  surely  show  these  unmistakable  marks 
and  convince  His  doubting  disciple  as  He  had 
convinced  all  the  rest.  Only  the  risen  Christ  Him- 
self can  establish  His  resurrection  in  the  mind  of 
Thomas. 

For  eight  long  days  Thomas  maintained  his  sus- 
pended judgment,  which,  without  evidence,  must 
have  become  his  settled  conviction.  Again  *'the  dis- 
ciples were  within  and  Thomas  with  them,"  and 
again  "J^sus  cometh,  the  doors  being  shut,  and 
stood  in  the  midst  and  said,  Peace  be  unto  you." 
We  may  easily  believe  that  Thomas  is  the  most  in- 
terested person  present.  As  such,  Jesus  addressed 
him  and  offers  to  him  the  very  evidence  he  had 
demanded,  without  any  repetition  of  his  desire  as 
previously  expressed.  This  One  Who  reads  the 
mind  and  heart  is  here  before  him,  this  One  Who 
sums  up  humanity  in  Himself,  this  One  Who  re- 
veals both  God  and  man.  But  if  these  lines  of 
spiritual  identification  are  not  sufficient  to  satisfy 
him,  the  evidence  that  appeals  to  sense  will  be  given. 
"Reach  hither  thy  finger  and  see  My  hands ;  and 
reach  hither  thy  hand  and  put  it  into  My  side :  and 
350 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

be  not  faithless  but  believing."  He  sees  and  hears 
and  feels,  and  thus  assures  himself  by  sight  and 
sound  and  touch  that  his  doubt  has  no  foundation 
outside  of  his  own  mind,  and  that  faith  must  there- 
fore take  its  place.  Before  him  stands  the  One 
Who  died  upon  the  cross.  He  deals  with  Thomas 
individually  and  personally,  and  thus  Thomas  deals 
with  Him.  His  identity  cannot  be  questioned,  and 
Thomas  comes  to  his  conclusion  with  absolute  as- 
surance. Jesus  is  before  him,  the  Christ  of  the 
cross  and  the  tomb.  "My  Lord  and  my  God,"  is 
his  cry  of  recognition  and  relief.  His  mind  is  not 
inert,  his  heart  is  not  barren,  nor  is  his  will  obdu- 
rate. Thomas  is  Thomas  again  in  his  own  esti- 
mation and  in  that  of  His  Master.  His  spirit  has 
spoken.  His  confession  of  faith  embraces  the  risen 
Christ  as  his  divine  Lord  and  Master,  and  the  best 
and  all  he  knows  of  God,  the  Person  Whom  he  has 
known  and  loved,  in  Whom  he  has  found  life  and 
leadership,  and  to  Whom  he  owes  an  absolute  alle- 
giance. 

Only  Christ  Himself,  the  risen  Christ,  can  con- 
vey to  the  mind  of  man  the  thought  and  meaning 
of  resurrection.  He  alone  can  lift  us  to  the  level 
of  His  own  life,  morally  and  spiritually.  Like 
Thomas,  we  need  the  personal  touch  and  contact  at 
the  point  of  our  individual  weakness.  But  let  us 
remember  that  we  are  to  know  Him  through  His 
deity  as  well  as  through  His  humanity.  Let  us  re- 
member that  man  is  less  body  than  mind  and  spirit. 
Hence  Jesus  rebukes  Thomas  for  basing  his  faith 
on  his  sight,  and  commends  those  who  believe  with- 

351 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

out  seeing  Him.  "Because  thou  hast  seen  me,  thou 
hast  beHeved:  blessed  are  they  that  have  not  seen 
and  yet  have  beHeved."  Happy  is  the  man  whose 
Christian  faith  rests  upon  the  invisible  Person.  Our 
eyes  see  less  than  we  think  and  only  in  our  spirits 
do  we  really  see  God.  The  knowledge  of  God  may 
come  to  men's  minds  variously  mediated,  but  it 
ought  also  to  be  immediate,  for  faith  is  the  direct 
approach  to  God.  Above  sight,  and  better  than 
sight,  is  the  spiritual  insight  we  call  Christian  faith, 
a  movement  of  the  man,  intellect,  sensibility,  and 
will,  that  presses  into  the  presence  of  God,  that 
claims  Christ  as  its  object  and  its  vindication,  and 
that  knows  Him  as  the  Christ  of  humanity  and  the 
Christ  of  deity,  the  Christ  of  life  and  death  and 
resurrection,  man's  perfect  Savior,  and  God's  per- 
fect revelation  of  Himself. 

Jesus  has  done  all  He  promised  to  do,  and  hence 
the  conclusion  must  hold  that  He  is  all  He  claimed 
to  be.  His  resurrection  must  be  regarded  as  a 
superhuman  and  a  spiritual  fact,  attesting  His  di- 
vine Personality  in  the  midst  of  human  history,  for 
it  is  also  an  accredited  historic  fact.  Jesus  is  iden- 
tified with  men  after  His  resurrection  as  well  as 
before,  and  they  knew  Him  as  the  same  divine  Per- 
son. His  powers  are  enlarged  or  given  a  wider 
scope  of  action.  He  commissions  His  disciples  to 
continue  His  work  according  to  His  conception  and 
in  contravention  of  their  own,  and  by  the  means  He 
has  appointed  for  the  spiritual  conquest  of  the 
world. 


352 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

"Many  other  signs  did  Jesus  in  the  presence  of 
His  disciples  which  are  not  written  in  this  book : 
but  these  are  written  that  ye  may  believe  that  Jesus 
is  the  Christ  the  Son  of  God,  and  that  believing  ye 
may  have  life  in  His  name."  So  few  are  the  signs 
here  given  and  yet  so  satisfactory  to  one  who  can 
read  them  aright,  that  John  deems  it  his  duty  to 
explain  the  omission  of  so  many.  These  are  not 
all,  but  they  are  enough.  The  supreme  manifesta- 
tion of  the  Person  of  Christ  in  His  death  and  resur- 
rection leaves  but  little  room  or  reason  for  any  other 
manifestations  of  His  humanity  or  demonstrations 
of  His  deity.  Enough  has  been  given  to  show  that 
Christ  is  superior  to  death  as  the  penalty  of  sin 
and  the  contradiction  of  life.  The  Person  of  Christ, 
in  its  elements  and  in  its  unity,  in  its  relation  to 
men  and  in  its  relation  to  God,  remains  unchanged 
by  the  destructive  power  of  death.  Henceforth,  the 
risen  Christ  shows  us  human  life  beyond  death  as 
well  as  before  death,  and  promises  to  place  within 
believers  the  life  that  is  eternal. 

Often  have  we  wondered  that  more  was  not  told 
of  a  life  that  is  so  important.  Perhaps  we  have 
found  our  explanation  only  when  we  fully  realized 
that  the  supreme  purpose  of  the  Gospels  is  to  man- 
ifest a  person,  and  not  merely  to  record  His  words 
and  deeds.  Hence  we  must  press  into  the  very  pres- 
ence of  the  Christ  and  see  Him  for  ourselves.  We 
must  see  Him  as  He  is.  We  must  get  this  direct, 
personal  knowledge,  for  nothing  less  can  answer 
our  real  need.  We  must  see  Him  through  the 
honest,  appreciative  eyes  of  John  and  of  all  the  rest 

353 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

of  His  disciples.  We  must  see  Him  also  through 
the  envious  eyes  of  His  enemies.  We  must  see  Him 
by  faith  in  immediate  vision  until  we  can  truly  say, 
we  have  seen  the  Lord.  We  must  see  Him  and 
know  Him  until  we  are  sure  He  sees  and  knows  us 
and  is  willing  to  call  us  by  name  and  commission 
us  to  do  His  work. 

Like  a  modern  Thomas,  the  poet,  Richard  Wat- 
son Gilder,  has  given  expression  to  his  personal 
convictions. 

"If  Jesus  Christ  is  a  man — 
And  only  a  man — I  say 
That  of  all  mankind  I  cleave  to  Him, 
And  to  Him  will  I  cleave  alway. 

*Tf  Jesus  Christ  is  a  God — 
And  the  only  God — I  swear 
I  will  follow  Him  thro'  heaven  and  hell, 
The  earth,  the  sea,  and  the  air." 

For  the  third  time  in  the  course  of  our  study  of 
John's  Gospel,  we  have  come  to  a  climactic  man- 
ifestation of  Jesus  as  the  Christ.  The  first  is  His 
public  entry  into  Jerusalem,  when  He  is  proclaimed 
the  King  of  Israel  as  the  natural  outcome  of  His 
public  ministry,  the  spontaneous  outburst  of  popular 
feeling,  and  the  fulfillment  of  God's  purpose  as 
declared  in  prophecy.  The  second  closes  His  teach- 
ing concerning  the  divine  life  of  men  with  His  sub- 
lime prayer,  in  which  He  beholds  God,  the  Father, 
with  unveiled  face,  and  links  the  divine  with  the 
human  and  the  human  with  the  divine.     The  third 

354 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

shows  Him  as  the  Messiah,  born  to  die  as  well  as 
to  live,  and  as  the  spiritual  Liberator  and  Leader 
of  men,  over  Whom  death  has  no  power,  the  One 
Who  combines  in  Himself  the  natural  and  the  super- 
natural, the  historic  and  the  spiritual,  the  visible  and 
the  invisible,  humanity  and  deity,  a  Personality 
that  demands  both  a  human  and  a  divine  recog- 
nition. The  first  reveals  to  us  the  historic  Christ, 
the  second  the  spiritual  Christ,  and  the  third  unites 
both  in  its  supreme  appeal  to  men,  whatever  their 
moral  attitude  or  their  spiritual  development. 

Let  us  not  think  of  John  as  a  rhetorician,  but 
rather  as  a  historian,  a  philosopher,  and  a  religious 
leader.  Let  us  think  of  these  three  climaxes  in  the 
fourth  Gospel  as  the  summits  of  the  ascending 
thought,  the  mountain  tops  where  God  and  man 
may  meet.  John  has  found  language  with  which  to 
express  the  thoughts  that  fill  his  mind  because  his 
thought  has  first  been  written  in  personality  and 
character  and  life.  He  is  a  master  of  words  be- 
cause he  is  a  master  of  ideas.  He  has  a  new  knowl- 
edge to  communicate.  He  knows  in  the  same  sense 
God  teaches.  He  has  come  to  God's  gate  as  truly 
as  God  has  come  to  his ;  being  has  answered  to  be- 
ing, the  less  to  the  Greater,  and  the  Greater  to  the 
less ;  this  mutual  relation  has  developed  until  the 
Galilean  fisherman  has  become  the  beloved  dis- 
ciple, the  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the  spiritual 
interpreter  of  his  human  friend  and  his  divine 
Savior. 

What  themes  for  human  thought,  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  and  the  life  beyond  death !    What  thoughts 

355 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

these  themes  are  calculated  to  awaken  in  men  who 
desire  to  know  their  own  natures  and  their  own 
needs ;  thoughts  of  life  in  its  length  and  breadth, 
its  height  and  depth.  Life  and  immortality  have 
been  brought  to  light,  and  men  are  now  enabled  to 
contemplate  their  own  life  with  God  as  its  inter- 
preter. Theirs  is  the  kingdom,  the  opportunity  for 
spiritual  culture  and  spiritual  ministry  under  divine 
direction.  The  kingdom  belongs  to  them  and  they 
belong  to  the  kingdom.  They  are  to  be  perfected 
in  its  life  and  liberty  and  by  word  and  example  to 
make  known  to  men  beyond  its  farthest  frontiers 
their  purchased  privilege  of  entrance.  If  the  call 
is  universal,  the  coming  of  millions  degrades  not 
this  kingdom  nor  lessens  the  glory  of  a  single  soul. 
The  ordinary  Christian  bears  at  least  one  mark  that 
distinguishes  him,  he  is  spiritual  in  the  Christian 
sense.  His  individuality  is  first  saved  and  then 
sanctified.  A  new  hope  inspires  him  and  he  looks 
out  upon  a  new  prospect.  The  power  of  custom 
and  caste  has  been  broken  and  he  acts  with  increas- 
ing freedom  in  his  devotion  to  higher  ideals.  He 
learns  anew  the  great  words  of  religious  life,  truth, 
and  law  and  atonement,  salvation  and  service  and 
sufifering,  sanctification  and  association  and  wor- 
ship. 

Men  who  enter  this  life  have  vision  of  things 
spiritual  as  well  as  things  temporal.  They  see  and 
know  the  nobler  things  and  seek  them  with  concen- 
trated energies.  They  accept  God's  interpretation 
of  human  life  and  realize  its  truth  as  they  work  out 
their  own  transformation.     Duty  becomes  privilege, 

356 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

praise  the  vernacular  of  the  spirit,  and  prayer  the 
open  path  of  approach  to  God.  "Our  Father  Who 
art  in  heaven"  is  to  be  spoken  in  direct  address  with 
the  assurance  that  God  in  heaven  hears.  Men  draw 
near  to  God  by  faith  because  God  draws  near  to 
men  in  Christ  and  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  This  draw- 
ing together  of  God  and  man  makes  it  possible  for 
men  to  come  closer  to  each  other.  The  Christian 
Church  is  a  psychological  product  as  well  as  a 
religious  organization.  It  has  its  own  peculiar  bond 
of  unity  and  its  own  inspiring  ideals.  The  Holy 
Spirit  manifests  His  presence  in  the  assembly  of 
saints  just  as  Jesus,  after  His  resurrection,  appeared 
to  His  disciples  but  not  to  the  world.  The  presence 
of  the  Spirit  completes  the  company  when  believers 
assemble  in  the  name  of  Christ,  unifies  them  in  one 
body,  and  awakens  within  them  the  consciousness 
of  God. 

Then  let  the  resurrection  of  Christ  teach  us  all 
it  taught  the  first  disciples.  Let  it  bring  to  us  its 
message,  not  only  from  the  fourth  Gospel,  but  also 
from  the  other  three,  and  particularly  from  the 
Epistles.  For  the  moment,  we  may  wisely  set  aside 
our  purpose  to  confine  our  attention  to  the  one 
book  under  review.  In  his  First  Epistle,  Peter 
makes  this  impressive  reference  to  the  subject  now 
in  hand.  "Blessed  be  the  God  and  Father  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  Who  according  to  His  great 
mercy  begat  us  again  unto  a  living  hope  by  the 
resurrection  of  Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead,  unto  an 
inheritance  incorruptible,  and  undefiled,  and  that 
fadeth  not  away,  reserved  in  heaven  for  you,  who 
357 


The  Resurrection  of  Jesus 

by  the  power  of  God  are  guarded  through  faith  unto 
a  salvation  ready  to  be  revealed  in  the  last  time." 
In  his  Epistle  to  the  Colossians,  Paul  makes  this 
practical  application:  "If  then  ye  were  raised  to- 
gether with  Christ,  seek  the  things  that  are  above, 
where  Christ  is,  seated  on  the  right  hand  of  God. 
Set  your  mind  on  things  that  are  above,  not  on 
things  that  are  upon  the  earth.  For  ye  died,  and 
your  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God."  In  his  First 
Epistle,  John  tells  us  what  all  Christians  ought  to 
know  by  personal  experience.  "Behold  what  manner 
of  love  the  Father  hath  bestowed  upon  us,  that  we 
should  be  called  the  children  of  God;  and  such  we 
are.  For  this  cause  the  world  knoweth  us  not,  be- 
cause it  knew  Him  not.  Beloved  now  are  we  chil- 
dren of  God,  and  it  is  not  yet  made  manifest  what 
we  shall  be." 

Returning  once  more  to  our  Gospel,  we  read  the 
words  of  our  Lord  from  our  present  viewpoint. 
"I  am  the  resurrection,  and  the  life :  he  that  believ- 
eth  on  Me,  though  he  die,  yet  shall  he  live ;  and  who- 
soever liveth  and  believeth  on  Me  shall  never  die." 
The  body  suffers  death,  or  separation  from  the 
spirit,  but  the  spirit  lives  by  faith  on  the  Son  of 
God.  It  suffers  no  separation  from  Him  for  the 
reason  Paul  assigned  in  the  eighth  chapter  of  Ro- 
mans, it  rests  under  no  condemnation.  The  Chris- 
tian follows  Christ  all  the  way,  even  through  death 
and  resurrection,  in  order  to  reach  the  life  beyond 
death,  since  association  with  Christ  is  the  essential 
thing  in  Christian  life. 

358 


CHAPTER  XXVI. 
A  Personal  Interview. 

The  last  chapter  of  the  Gospel  of  John  has  been 
regarded  by  certain  writers  as  a  supplement  or  post- 
script containing  facts  that  were  subsequently  added 
by  the  author  himself  or  perhaps  by  some  other 
hand.  They  believe  that  this  chapter  did  not  orig- 
inally belong  to  the  book,  which  really  ended  with 
chapter  twenty,  and  that  it  was  written  to  explain 
why  "John's  service  upon  earth  lasted  so  much 
longer  than  Peter's."  However,  it  is  admitted  that 
as  a  supplement  it  belongs  to  the  book  to  which  it 
is  appended,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  it  has  but 
little  connection  from  a  literary,  historical,  or  doc- 
trinal point  of  view. 

Like  the  fifth  and  seventh  chapters,  the  twenty- 
first  opens  with  the  words,  "after  these  things,"  a 
loose  connecting  phrase  which  serves  the  writer's 
purpose  by  indicating  in  a  general  way  the  order 
of  events.  If  the  change  of  subject  seems  to  be 
abrupt,  let  us  bear  in  mind  that  we  have  observed 
at  least  two  other  equally  abrupt  changes  in  the 
body  of  the  book.  Let  us  also  consider  the  fact  that 
the  longer  service  of  John,  as  compared  with  that 
of  Peter,  would  scarcely  interest  the  Christian 
Church,  for  whom  this  Gospel  was  especially  pre- 
pared. If  this  last  chapter  shows  this  one  fact  as 
some  believe,  may  it  not  also  show  much  more? 
May  it  not  be  linked  to  the  body  of  the  book  by  a 

359 


A  Personal  Interview 

logical  connection  that  is  both  clear  and  convincing? 
What  reader  would  think  of  stopping  at  the  close 
of  the  twentieth  chapter  and  deliberately  leaving 
the  twenty-first  unread?  What  thinking  mind  fails 
to  note  the  logical  necessity  of  pursuing  the  thought 
to  its  completion  in  this  account  of  the  gathering 
again  of  the  scattered  followers  of  our  Lord  ?  What 
student  of  the  written  Word  does  not  desire  the 
reassertion  of  the  principle  of  personal  life  through 
Christ  and  personal  devotion  to  Christ  which  char- 
acterizes His  followers?  The  teaching  of  Jesus 
must  be  made  operative  in  order  to  fill  up  its  own 
content.  Perhaps  this  conception  of  Christian  doc- 
trine may  afford  us  the  clue  to  the  proper  interpre- 
tation of  this  closing  chapter  of  the  book  and  this 
initial  chapter  in  a  new  movement  in  religious  life 
and  religious  service. 

By  carefully  surveying  this  portion  of  our  text, 
we  discover  that  it  shows  us,  in  addition  to  what 
has  already  been  considered,  that  the  risen  Christ 
could  give  success  to  His  disciples  in  their  ordinary 
occupation  as  fishermen;  that  He  could  associate 
with  them  in  a  friendly,  human  way  after  His 
resurrection;  that  He  wished  to  restore  Peter  to  a 
right  state  of  mind  and  a  right  relation  to  Himself ; 
that  He  proposed  to  establish  right  personal  rela- 
tions with  each  and  all  of  His  disciples ;  that  He 
outlined  the  earthly  cheers  of  Peter  and  John  as 
though  He  knew  the  "future  of  both,  being  per- 
sonally interested  in  each,  however  dififerent;  that 
He  never  leaves  Himself  out  of  the  account  as  if 
He  were  ever  to  be  unknown  and  inactive ;  that 

360 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

Christ  always  considers  Himself  the  real  leader 
and  commander  of  His  people ;  that  He  proposes  to 
continue  His  work  in  the  world  by  means  of  His 
disciples  who  are  bound  to  Him  by  personal  ties 
that  call  for  a  corresponding  personal  devotion. 

The  disciples  of  Jesus  are  believers  who  are  thus 
personally  related  to  God  and  to  each  other.  They 
are  not  under  law,  but  under  grace.  Legalism 
is  not  the  Christian's  status,  the  Christian's  doctrine, 
or  the  Christian's  life,  nor  is  ecclesiasticism  the 
bond  of  Christian  union.  No  existing  reHgious  or- 
ganization obscured  this  truth,  and  no  future  organ- 
ization should  be  permitted  to  obscure  it,  a  truth 
which  receives  peculiar  emphasis  in  the  twenty-first 
chapter,  thus  linking  it  practically  and  theoretically 
with  all  that  has  been  taught  in  the  other  twenty. 
A  recent  writer  declares  that  "the  great  truth  that 
Jesus  is  the  Son  of  God,  the  divine  Lord,  is  also 
the  central,  unifying  thought  of  the  postscript." 
Here  this  doctrine  has  a  practical  application  which 
carries  it  out  to  its  completion.  Men  are  to  be 
Christian  day  by  day.  The  Christian  life  is  real 
as  well  as  ideal.  Christian  doctrine  must  be  illus- 
trated in  personal  life.  The  living  Christ  establishes 
the  resurrection  as  a  historic  fact  and  a  religious 
doctrine,  and  the  living  Christian  is  called  upon  to 
establish  his  Christian  character  and  spiritual  life 
and  give  to  both  their  proper  substance  and  reality. 

Jesus  manifests  Himself  to  His  disciples  at  the 
Sea  of  Tiberias  in  view  of  His  absence  and  His 
separation  from  them.  His  human  nature  manifests 
itself  and  also  His  divinity,  for  both  are  now  for- 

361 


A  Personal  Interview 

ever  wrapped  together  in  one  Person.  He  comes  to 
remind  His  disciples  of  Himself  and  also  of  them- 
selves, for  they  are  evidently  drifting  back  to  their 
old  occupation.  He  comes  to  call  them  to  duty  and 
to  prepare  them  for  their  extraordinary  work.  At 
least  three  things  distinguish  this  seaside  interview : 
the  miraculous  draught  of  fishes  by  which  they 
knew  Him,  the  unexpected  breakfast  by  which  they 
share  His  company  once  more,  and  the  spiritual 
restoration  of  Peter  by  which  He  pointed  out  the 
essential  thing  in  Christian  life,  namely,  a  right 
personal  relation  to  Himself. 

Without  any  word  of  introduction,  John,  and 
then  Peter,  and  all  the  rest,  recognize  Jesus  by  the 
miraculous  draught  of  fishes,  for  who  but  Jesus 
could  thus  declare  Himself?  Christians  must  learn 
to  know  their  Lord  at  sight  and  to  interpret  aright 
the  lessons  He  teaches  by  word  and  deed.  He  is 
even  able  to  assist  them  in  making  a  living,  for  He 
governs  in  temporal  as  well  as  in  spiritual  things, 
and  hence  their  faith  in  Him  should  expand  in 
every  direction.  The  breakfast  they  all  enjoy  on 
that  memorable  morning  was  provided  partly  by 
Him  and  partly  by  themselves,  typifying  continued 
co-operation.  His  identity  is  unquestioned,  for  He 
possesses  the  same  power,  the  same  purpose,  the 
same  propriety  of  act,  and  the  same  personal  pres- 
ence they  had  learned  to  know  so  well. 

They  have  taken  an  unusual  number  of  fish,  their 
fast  has  been  broken,  and  now  they  can  consider 
spiritual  things  which  are  not  less  important  to 
them.     Peter  was  impatient  to  come  into  the  pres- 

362 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

ence  of  Jesus  once  more  and  to  respond  in  obedi- 
ence to  His  commands,  but  this  is  not  all  he  needs 
in  order  to  secure  spiritual  restoration  and  enjoy 
personal  freedom.  That  piercing,  personal  ques- 
tion, "Simon,  son  of  John,  lovest  thou  me?"  twice 
repeated  with  only  one  change  in  its  form,  reminds 
Peter  of  the  days  before  Jesus  renamed  him,  and 
calls  out  an  ever-deepening  answer,  till  Peter  casts 
himself  confidently  upon  the  superior  knowledge  of 
Jesus.  ''Lord,  Thou  knowest  all  things.  Thou  know- 
est  that  I  love  Thee."  Peter  was  thoroughly  grieved 
before  he  was  thoroughly  relieved.  A  threefold 
denial  of  Christ  called  for  a  threefold  confession  of 
faith  in  Him.  Peter's  sin  affected  his  associates 
as  well  as  himself,  and  his  correction  was  for  them 
as  well  as  for  him.  The  superior  knowledge  of 
Christ  and  His  clearer  consciousness  afford  the  best 
basis  for  the  knowledge  of  Peter.  The  mind  of 
Christ  is  at  once  rational  and  trustworthy,  clear 
and  constant.  If  Peter  is  less  self-reliant  now,  he 
evidently  relies  upon  Christ  by  that  much  more,  and 
thus  Christ,  the  risen  Christ,  becomes  the  founda- 
tion of  his  inner  life.  This  may  be  called  the 
realism  of  mysticism.  The  love  of  Christ  is  not 
only  general  and  universal,  but  also  personal  and 
particular,  so  that  the  one  who  is  its  object  may 
respond  in  like  manner.  "The  Lord  demanded 
positive,  unmistakable  love  because  that  grace  pre- 
eminently determines  character,"  says  the  last  au- 
thor quoted.  "What  a  man  loves  reveals  unerringly 
what  he  is.  This  chapter,  then,  so  full  of  varied 
and  interesting  incident,  is  instinct  with  one  great 

363 


A  Personal  Interview 

thought,  the  genuine  love  of  the  disciple  for  his 
Master."  The  gospel  of  Christ  must  be  written  in 
character  and  life,  it  must  develop  into  personality. 
It  is  a  real  gospel  for  real  Hfe.  Professor  Thayer 
reckoned  as  the  central,  all-conquering  truth  of 
Christianity,  "Personal  loyalty  to  a  personal  Mas- 
ter, the  crucified,  risen,  reigning  Christ."  We  are, 
therefore,  inclined  to  conclude  that  whether  or  not 
the  last  chapter  of  John  is  a  supplement  or  post- 
script, its  importance  appears  in  that  it  illustrates* 
this  central  truth  in  a  way  that  has  its  special  value 
for  Christians  to-day  as  well  as  for  the  original 
actors.  Its  worth  is  practical  as  well  as  theoretical 
or  doctrinal.  In  this  connection,  Professor  Marcus* 
Dods,  in  his  commentary,  asks  and  answers  the 
question,  "What  is  Christianity?"  "God's  way  of 
getting  hold  of  us,  of  attaching  us  to  what  is  good, 
of  making  us  holy,  perfect  men,  and  the  method  He 
uses  is  the  presentation  of  goodness  in  a  personal 
form."  So  Christ  must  appear  to  His  followers 
even  as  they  are  thus  to  appear  to  men,  for  as  the 
philosopher,  Eucken,  has  said,  "Personality  becomes 
the  channel  through  which  a  higher  world  is  re- 
vealed." 

Jesus  demands  Peter's  love  for  Himself,  "Lovest 
thou  Me  ?"  as  though  that  were  the  complete  equiv- 
alent of  love  to  God.  Christ  is  consistent.  He  is 
God  revealed  to  human  eyes  and  in  keeping  with 
His  self-revelation.  He  has  chosen  personality — 
clarified  Christian  personality — in  which  to  lodge 
His  bequest  to  the  world.  His  disciples  thus  become 
the  conscious  and  voluntary  agents  of  His  will. 

364 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

To  the  attentive  ears  of  the  restored  Peter,  Jesus 
reads  his  future  life  in  its  general  outlines,  for 
Peter  has  a  future  now  that  is  definite  and  readable. 
His  early  life  was  marked  by  impulse  and  inde- 
pendence, but  this  old  age  will  be  conditioned  by 
dependence  and  restraint,  and  end  in  a  death  which 
will  glorify  God.  Dependence,  as  well  as  independ- 
ence, are  measured  to  him  in  the  circle  of  his  life 
and  the  slowly  unfolding  curriculum  of  his  spiritual 
discipline. 

John's  future  history  is  dimly  indicated  in  the 
compass  of  one  short  sentence,  ''If  I  will  that  he 
tarry  till  I  come" — the  will  of  Christ  is  to  govern 
his  coming  years  and  appoint  the  hour  of  his  de- 
parture. John  offers  no  objection  to  this  exercise 
of  the  right  of  complete  control,  for  it  is  all  implied 
in  the  present  harmony  of  his  will  with  the  will  of 
the  Master,  it  is  the  basis  for  comfort  and  not  com- 
plaint, it  is  the  one  assurance  of  his  life  amid  the 
unseen  toils  and  trials  of  other  years.  Surely  the 
years  of  a  greatly  lengthened  life,  the  added  days  of 
faithful  service,  the  unfaltering  faith  of  this  Chris- 
tian man,  and  the  unbending  orthodoxy  of  this  great 
apostle  fulfilled  Christ's  pregnant  prophecy.  His 
life  ended  only  when  his  task  was  done  and  his 
presence  was  no  longer  required  in  the  church  and 
in  the  world.  As  he  calmly  closes  his  career,  he 
becomes  the  rear  guard  of  this  wonderful  procession 
that  passed  across  the  stage  of  action  and  left  its 
record  on  the  pages  of  history.  Behold  that  pro- 
cession that  begins  with  the  Word,  the  divine  Word, 
as  He  steps  from  eternity  into  time,  and  that  ends 

365 


A  Personal  Interview 

as  St.  John,  the  divine,  steps  from  time  into  eter- 
nity. This  last  great  leader  sees  just  where  he 
belongs  in  this  wonderful  procession  and  ofifers  his 
written  testimony  to  call  forth  the  faith  of  those 
who  follow  in  this  continuous,  world-wide  con- 
course as  it  presses  on  in  its  marvelous  movement. 
He  forms  a  part  of  history,  looking  backward  and 
also  looking  forward,  in  which  he  finds  Jesus  Christ 
as  the  one  great,  central  Figure,  and  faith  in  Him 
as  the  one  supreme  duty  of  every  man.  As  this 
great  procession  continues  to  move  across  the  stage 
of  time,  new  leaders  will  appear  and  new  manifesta- 
tions will  be  given,  definite  manifestations  of  the 
presence  and  power  of  this  same  divine  Person, 
Who  explains  history,  Who  rationalizes  human  life, 
Who  harmonizes  the  soul  within  itself  and  with  its 
God,  Who  is  the  supreme  expression  of  God's  love 
to  man,  and  Who  is  the  Prophet,  Priest,  and  King, 
whether  we  consider  His  relation  to  the  individual 
or  the  race. 


366 


CHAPTER  XXVII. 
Conclusion. 

In  our  present  study  of  the  fourth  Gospel,  which 
we  here  conclude,  we  have  sought  to  press  into  the 
presence  of  Jesus  by  the  most  direct  mental  method 
that  lies  open  to  us.  History  gives  us  the  facts  we 
require,  but  history  must  be  read  as  well  as  written. 
The  facts  which  the  historian  has  here  selected  from 
the  mass  before  him,  the  different  men  he  portrays, 
and  the  various  movements  he  describes  are  all  done 
in  brief,  if  not  in  miniature,  yet  true  to  life  in  its 
essential  nature  and  in  its  real  relations.  The  task 
of  the  reader  is  to  enter  into  sympathy  with  the 
writer  and  thus  make  that  initial  mental  connection 
that  links  him  to  the  historic  group  he  desires  to 
enter  and  understand. 

Thus,  and  thus  only,  can  we  appreciate  the  men 
of  the  past,  the  meaning  of  their  words,  and  the  sig- 
nificance of  their  acts.  Through  the  mind  of  John 
we  come  to  the  mind  of  Jesus,  through  his  con- 
sciousness we  enter  the  consciousness  of  the  Christ. 
We  know  John  better  than  we  know  Jesus,  because 
there  is  no  mystery  about  his  life  except  such  as 
we  find  in  our  own.  He  is  one  of  us.  He  lends  us 
his  mental  machinery  and  opens  other  minds  so  that 
we  see  their  action  in  relation  to  Jesus  and  thus 
interpret  the  One  Whom  we  really  want  to  know. 
But  the  mind  of  Jesus  is  opened  to  us  also  by  His 
own  word  and  act.    He  reveals  Himself  and  so  re- 

367 


Conclusion 

veals  God,  and  we,  too,  behold  His  glory  as  of  the 
only  begotten  from  the  Father.  We,  too,  begin  to 
see  for  ourselves  in  immediate,  mental  vision. 

Our  most  direct  view  of  Jesus  is  that  which  Christ 
Himself  opens  to  us  by  the  aid  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
Who  is  the  supreme  interpreter  of  Christ  to  every 
human  soul.  The  divine  One  Whom  John  knew, 
we  also  know,  for  "the  Son  abides  in  the  house 
forever."  Two  intelligent  beings  cannot  fail  to 
meet  when  one  of  the  two  is  God.  Men  walk  like 
children  into  the  outstretched  arms  of  Deity.  In 
the  experiences  of  life  they  cannot  avoid  knowing 
Him,  and  they  may  know  Him  as  He  is  manifested 
in  the  Person  of  Jesus  Christ,  our  Savior,  and  our 
Lord.  They  can  know  Him  and  the  power  of  His 
resurrection,  for  ultimately  all  men  must  walk  by 
faith  and  not  by  sight.  Ultimately  the  gates  of 
sense  will  close  and  the  spirit  of  man  must  rely 
upon  its  own  inherent  powers  of  perception.  Spirit- 
ual vision  and  spiritual  knowledge  will  be  all  that 
remain,  or  shall  we  say  that  these  processes  of  the 
mature  mind  have  permanently  vacated  the  object 
lessons  of  the  kindergarten  of  life.  Men  are  adapted 
to  see  in  spiritual  vision  the  very  One  Whom  John 
thus  saw  in  those  after  years  when  the  visible  pres- 
ence of  Jesus  was  punctuated  by  His  ascension. 
Men  are  still  contending  with  the  Christ  or  co- 
operating with  Him,  they  are  still  writing  their  own 
history,  which  is  essentially  pagan  or  essentially 
Christian. 

If  we  are  inclined  to  wonder  at  the  clearness  of 
John's  conception  of  Christ  and  his  consistency  of 

368 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

thought  as  stated  in  his  Gospel,  we  must  call  to  mind 
the  fact  that  back  of  John  are  Jesus  and  the  Holy 
Spirit.  He  portrays  a  Person  Whom  he  esteems 
both  human  and  divine,  but  Whose  character  is 
simple  and  comprehensible  and  always  issues  in  con- 
sistent action.  Christ  casts  no  shadows  around 
Him.  John  rejoices  in  His  presence  and  there  frees 
himself  from  preconceived  ideas  and  materialistic 
philosophy.  "The  final  gospel  is  the  gospel  of  the 
essential  and  eternal,"  says  President  Henry  G. 
Weston.  "It  is  the  personal  gospel.  The  divine 
persons,  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Spirit,  are  presented 
in  Their  order,  each  in  His  distinct  sphere  and  each 
in  His  relation  to  the  others,  while  a  personal  rela- 
tion to  a  personal  Being  comprises  all  that  is  neces- 
sary for  perfect  conduct  and  character." 

John  appreciates  personality  as  the  highest  form 
of  being,  whether  viewed  as  existing  or  as  man- 
ifesting its  existence  and  its  nature.  He  appreci- 
ates the  material  world  and  human  life  in  time,  at 
their  full  value,  but  he  does  not  stop  with  these  as 
though  they  were  our  best  or  our  all,  but  passes  on 
into  the  timeless,  spaceless  state  which  the  spirit 
enters  by  faith  in  Jesus  Christ,  To  him,  nature  is 
God's  handiwork,  the  product  of  His  creative  will, 
the  field  of  human  life  and  action.  To  him,  history 
is  the  field  of  human  choice  and  development  on 
the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other  of  divine  interest  and 
intervention  that  links  all  deity  with  all  humanity 
by  the  bonds  of  God's  own  wisdom  and  love.  Hence 
he  describes  being,  good  and  evil,  from  God  on  the 
one  hand  to  Satan  on  the  other,  with  perfect  free- 

369 


Conclusion 

dom,  yet  with  perfect  appreciation  of  his  several 
subjects. 

The  sacred  historian  must  enter  the  sacred  pre- 
cincts of  the  soul  and  report  its  motives  as  well  as 
its  acts.  He  must  read  the  thoughts  .and  intents  of 
the  heart,  and  as  we  study  the  Gospel  of  John,  we 
cannot  but  wonder  how  clearly  the  mind  of  friend 
and  foe  Jie  open  before  him.  Surely  he  has  been 
with  Jesus  and  learned  of  Him.  Hence  he  sees 
body  and  soul,  related,  separated,  reunited.  He 
knows  the  human  will  as  free,  and  so  depicts  its 
movements.  He  belongs  to  the  company  he  de- 
scribes, however  modest  his  references  to  himself. 
He  is  not  afraid  of  his  own  rehgion  and  his  own 
philosophy,  because  both  are  true  for  his  intellect, 
his  sensibilities,  and  his  will.  They  fit  the  man  be- 
cause they  are  derived  directly  from  Christ,  Whom 
John  portrays  with  the  skill  of  an  artist,  the  earnest- 
ness of  an  advocate,  and  the  insight  of  a  philos- 
opher. 

We  have  already  observed  that  John's  viewpoint 
is  that  of  the  metaphysician  rather  than  that  of  the 
ordinary  historian.  He  teaches  us  how  to  think  of 
reality,  especially  the  highest  kind  of  reality.  He 
exhibits  personality  with  startling  plainness  and 
directness  of  presentation.  His  portrait  of  the  Per- 
son of  Christ  appears  to  be  unstudied,  yet  marvel- 
ously  concise  and  complete.  This  perfect  person- 
ality occupies  the  center  of  his  canvass  and  enables 
him  to  show  the  personality  of  man  as  it  is  dwarfed 
or  developed,  its  latent  possibilities,  and  its  God- 

370 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

given  powers.    This  central  Personality  gives  to  his 
Gospel  its  content  and  consistency. 

John's  philosophy  is  the  legitimate  product  of  his 
religion,    and    not   the    reverse.      Hence    both    are 
Christian.     Both  have  the  same  center.     His  think- 
ing begins  w^ith  the  facts  he  observed,  the  principles 
he  tested,  and  the  persons  he  knows,  all  his  thought 
and  all  his  knowledge   centering  in  Jesus   Christ, 
Who  explains  all  else  and  Who  is   Himself   self- 
evidencing  and  self-explanatory,  like  any  ultimate 
truth.    John  never  loses  Christ  as  the  center  of  his 
system  of  thought  and  life.     If  he  teaches,  it  is  as 
one  who   has  been  taught;  if  he  commands,  it  is 
as   one    who    obeys.      He   never    snatches    Christ's 
scepter  of  authority  out  of  His  hand,  nor  does  he 
ever  assume  to  know  more  than  his  Master.     He  is 
Qirist's  disciple,  and  not  his  critic.     He  is  no  mere 
speculator,   as  Christ  is  no  mere  actor.     John  de- 
veloped the  doctrines  he  taught  to  their  logical  con- 
clusions and  needed  no  disciple  to  complete  what 
he  had  only  begun.     Human  philosophy  develops 
from  age  to  age,  and  shows  stages  of  progress  and 
great  names  that  are  Hnked  forever  with  great  ideas, 
but  the  divine  philosophy  of  Jesus  has  no  stages 
of  progress  save  in  the  human  apprehension  of  it 
from  age  to  age.     The  statements  of  John  remain 
as  clear-cut  as  when  they  were  first  made,  and  bear 
no  marks   of  subsequent  modification   or   revision. 
His  conclusions  have  all  the  solidity  of  his  premises 
because  the  movement  of  his  mind  is  not  reactionary 
but  direct,   not  negative  but  positive.     He  appre- 
hends truth  by  direct  approach,  and  not  by  a  lateral 
371 


Conclusion 

movement,  as  though  truth  were  only  a  compromise 
of  contending  ideas  or  the  opposite  of  error.  His 
philosophy,  like  his  religion,  has  substance  and 
positive  content. 

The  incarnation  forms  the  foundation  of  John's 
theory  of  things,  of  thought,  and  of  life.  He  there- 
fore begins  with  revelation,  which  is  God's  thought, 
to  which  he  adapts  man's  thought,  for  man's  think- 
ing must  connect  with  God's  thinking  somewhere. 
John  is  not  humiliated  by  this  condition,  but  on  the 
contrary,  highly  exalted  thereby.  The  condition 
liberates  instead  of  limits,  and  his  thought  soars  like 
the  eagle  in  its  flight.  A  new  expansive  power  en- 
ters his  mind  and  heart  when  he  accepts  Jesus  Christ 
as  God  manifest  in  the  flesh,  God  revealed  in  per- 
sonality, the  self-revelation  of  God  and  the  only 
revelation  possible,  since  man  is  not  able  by  search- 
ing to  find  out  God  or  even  to  call  forth  His  wis- 
dom, His  power,  and  His  love  in  their  divine  pleni- 
tude and  perfection.  God  appears  in  the  flesh, 
assuming  the  form  of  a  servant,  that  He  may 
conquer  sin  and  prepare  the  way  for  the  indwelling 
of  the  Spirit  in  every  human  heart  and  the  govern- 
ing of  all  men  by  His  holy  will.  The  divine  Pres- 
ence is  real,  active,  effective,  amid  the  strife  and 
conflict  of  human  life.  Men  are  called  upon  to 
believe  in  God  as  present  in  Christ  with  all  that 
this  implies,  the  forsaking  of  sin,  the  personal 
knowledge  of  pardon,  the  sanctification  of  the  be- 
liever, the  service  of  love.  Faith  is  the  human  con- 
dition of  the  Christian  life,  individual  and  social. 
The  great  truths  John  teaches  have  their  perma- 

372 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

nent  place  in  his  theory  of  redemption  and  their 
corresponding  consequences  here  and  hereafter. 

John  seeks  insight  rather  than  outlook,  the  former 
being  first  in  order  and  in  importance,  and  the  latter 
following  naturally  and  without  undue  effort.  He 
must  know  the  fundamental  principles  of  Christ's 
teaching,  for  these  will  shape  all  his  conclusions. 
In  the  book  of  the  Revelation,  which  was  no  doubt 
written  before  His  Gospel,  he  has  given  us  a  mar- 
velous view  of  the  future  of  the  church  and  the 
world,  and  even  the  analogies  he  presents  in  his 
Gospel  are  all  prophetic,  but  his  supreme  desire  is 
to  enter  the  very  soul  and  center  of  God's  kingdom 
of  truth  and  righteousness  and  love.  He  devotes 
himself  to  great  facts,  great  doctrines,  and  great 
persons.  He  knows  them  all,  relatively  and  in 
themselves.  No  other  disciple  in  that  little  group 
of  twelve  entered  into  such  perfect  sympathy  with 
Jesus,  by  which  he  was  prepared  to  set  forth  with 
peculiar  power  the  vital  element  of  the  gospel.  His 
sympathetic  insight  into  the  life  of  Jesus,  his  inti- 
mate knowledge  of  the  Person  of  Christ,  his  deep 
appreciation  of  the  teachings  of  our  Lord  and  the 
redemptive  work  wrought  by  Him,  are  all  clearly 
expressed  or  tacitly  implied  in  the  fourth  Gospel, 
and  all  unite  in  opening  to  the  thoughtful  mind  the 
widest  window  that  overlooks  human  life,  past, 
present,  and  future. 

It  is  only  natural  for  us  to  seek  some  brief  out- 
line that  will  adequately  express  the  substance  of 
John's  thought  and  offer  its  convenient  aid  in 
grouping  and  remembering  the  same.    We  naturally 

373 


Conclusion 

desire  to  make  John's  doctrine  more  usable  and 
so  more  serviceable.  The  outlines  which  are  often 
given,  appear  involved  and  cumbersome  rather  than 
concise  and  convenient,  while  some  are  satisfactory 
and  serve  their  purpose.  Our  effort  in  this  direc- 
tion has  been  to  gather  the  truth  of  the  fourth  Gos- 
pel into  an  organic  system  and  thus  reveal  its  unity 
and  render  the  whole  more  comprehensible. 

The  principle  of  unity  we  naturally  expect  to 
discover  in  the  Gospel  of  John,  appears  in  two 
ways :  First,  in  the  Person  of  Christ,  and,  second, 
in  the  purpose  of  the  author;  the  subject  of  thought 
and  the  object  of  discourse,  the  two  foci  of  the  same 
ellipse.  The  purpose  of  John  springs  directly  from 
the  Person  of  Christ  and  yet  offers  its  own  inde- 
pendent viewpoint  and  principle  of  unity.  Accord- 
ing to  the  first  principle,  the  general  order  is  that 
of  the  Gospel,  but  each  part  runs  through  the  whole 
just  as  the  muscular  system,  the  osseous  system,  the 
vascular  system,  and  the  nervous  system,  each  and 
all,  are  distributed  through  the  whole  body.  Accord- 
ing to  the  second  principle,  the  practical  conclusion 
is  reached  by  means  of  the  four  main  lines  of  divi- 
sion which  our  present  study  has  developed. 

Taking  up  the  second  principle  first,  we  find  the 
unity  of  the  Gospel  of  John  plainly  appearing  in 
the  one  great  purpose  for  which  the  book  was  writ 
ten,  namely,  that  men  may  believe  that  Jesus  is 
the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  and  believing  may  have 
life  in  His  Name,  the  extra  temporal  life,  the  eternal 
life,  the  spiritual  and  divine  life,  which  Christ  came 
to  confer.     Three  separate  movements  of  thought 

374 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

converge  in  this  one  purpose,  making  it  possible  for 
men  to  believe,  if  not  impossible  for  them  not  to 
believe. 

The  first  movement  is  set  forth  in  chapters  one  to 
twelve,  in  which  we  are  told  of  the  manifestation  of 
the  Messiah  to  Israel  and  to  mankind.  His  divine 
character  and  Person  being  asserted  in  the  very 
first  verse  and  further  revealed  as  He  mingles  with 
men  until  He  publicly  rides  into  the  national  cap- 
ital according  to  prophetic  announcement. 

The  second  movement  comprises  five  chapters,  the 
thirteenth  to  the  seventeenth.  The  individual  deal- 
ing and  personal  ministry  of  the  thirteenth  leads  us 
to  the  fourteenth,  in  which  personal  religion  or  the 
divine  Hfe  of  men  is  described.  Social  service  in 
the  fifteenth  is  naturally  followed  by  spiritual  leader- 
ship in  the  sixteenth,  which  prepares  us  for  the 
seventeenth,  the  wonderful  prayer  in  which  Jesus 
comes  unhindered  into  the  presence  of  God.  The 
inference  that  men  are  to  do  likewise  is  the  more 
easily  drawn  since  Jesus  is  here  represented  as 
man's  spiritual  leader. 

The  third  movement,  described  in  four  chapters, 
eighteen  to  twenty-one,  reveals  Christ  as  the  divine 
Redeemer,  Who  occasions  the  supreme  manifesta- 
tion of  sin,  when  the  innocent  One  is  rejected,  judi- 
cially condemned,  and  suffers  as  though  guilty,  and 
Who  makes  atonement  for  sin  by  being  obedient 
to  God  even  unto  death,  the  penalty  of  sin,  death 
as  man's  Messiah  and  man's  spiritual  Leader,  and 
Who  demonstrates  by  His  triumphant  resurrection 
His  power  over  sin  and  death,  and  above  all,  His 
375 


Conclusion 

Messianic  character  and  spiritual  leadership.  His 
redemptive  work  embodies  in  itself  both  preceding 
movements,  the  Messianic  or  historic,  and  the 
Christological  or  spiritual,  since  the  death  and  res- 
urrection of  Christ  are  both  historical  and  spiritual. 
Christ  is  alike  the  Head  of  the  individual  and  of  the 
race,  the  Leader  of  humanity  in  its  cosmic  and  in 
its  spiritual  life. 

Without  the  promised  Messiah,  men  could  not 
believe,  for  they  would  still  await  His  coming; 
without  a  spiritual  Leader  Who  is  able  to  show 
them  the  way  and  share  the  responsibiHty  of  lite 
here  and  hereafter,  men  could  not  beheve  because  a 
dependent  being  requires  leadership;  without  a 
divine  Redeemer  Who  is  able  to  relieve  the  guilty 
conscience  and  restore  the  soul  to  unity  within  itself 
and  to  its  right  relation  to  God  men  could  not  be- 
lieve since  sin  is  universal ;  but  with  these  demands 
of  man's  rational,  moral,  and  religious  nature  prop- 
erly met,  men  cannot  refuse  to  believe  without  doing 
violence  to  their  own  natures  as  intelligent,  moral, 
and  religious  beings. 

As  we  are  able  to  find  the  unity  of  the  Gospel  of 
John  taking  its  rise,  in  the  purpose  of  the  author, 
so  also  we  may  discover  that  it  proceeds  from  the 
Person  of  Christ,  the  great  central  Figure,  in  Whom 
all  things  consist,  all  teaching,  all  doctrine,  all  life, 
all  power.  He  it  is  Who  exhibits  the  simplicity  and 
the  sublimity  of  a  true  personality  rightly  consti- 
tuted and  rightly  related,  without  internal  division, 
contradiction,  or  conflict,  because  perfectly  harmo- 

376 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

nious  as   human  and  as   divine,   and  also  as  both 
united  in  one  being. 

The  unity  of  doctrine  which  lies  deeply  imbedded 
in  John's  thought  and  which  illuminates  his  pages 
from  first  to  last  may  be  set  forth  as  follows : 

I.  He  presents  the  Word,  Who  rightly  reveals  God 

to  man. 

1.  In  His  divine  life  and  divine  relations. 

2.  In  His  human  life  and  human  relations. 

II.  He  presents  Jesus,  Who  rightly  realizes  God's 

thought  of  man. 

1.  In  man's  divine  life  and  divine  relations. 

2.  In  man's  human  life  and  human  relations. 

III.  He  presents  Jesus  Christ  in  Whom  God  and 

man  are  rightly  related,  and  Who  recalls 
men  to  a  life  of  obedience. 

1.  By  intercession,  fellowship,  and  commun- 
ion with  God. 

2.  By  revealing  defective  personality  and  mak- 

ing atonement  for  it. 

3.  By  appealing  in  resurrection  life  and  pow- 

er to  human  personality. 

John  introduces  his  central  Figure  in  his  first 
sentence,  and  at  the  close  of  his  book,  after  he  has 
established  his  thesis,  he  states  his  one  great  pur- 
pose. The  doctrine  he  teaches  leads  to  the  duty  he 
requires,  and  the  duty  finds  ample  justification  in 
the  doctrine. 

Each  attempt  to  summarize  the  Gospel  of  John 
is  likely  to  drive  us  back  to  the  text  with  which  we 
began,  and  with  which  we  should  always  end.  This 
it  is  that  opens  to  us  the  mind  of  John  and  through 

377 


Conclusion 

him  admits  us  into  the  mind  of  the  Master.  We 
are  enabled  to  see  our  Divine  Lord  in  immediate 
vision  and  come  to  Him  by  direct  approach.  Here 
we  enter  the  new  Hfe  that  is  forever  new ;  here  we 
rise  into  a  new  consciousness  that  claims  Christ  as 
its  living  source  and  center;  here  we  are  inspired 
with  a  new  hope  whose  anchor  holds  within  the 
veil.  Doubt  is  dispelled,  the  doubt  that  clings  so 
close  and  claims  so  much,  and  faith  fills  out  the 
spirit  in  its  true  type  and  proportions  according  to 
the  thought  of  John  and  Jesus,  and  as  the  proper 
product  of  a  book  that  was  written  to  enable  men 
to  believe  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God. 

"Whatever  may  be  the  surprises  of  the  future, 
Jesus  will  never  be  surpassed,"  such  is  the  explicit 
admission,  such  is  the  confident  prophecy  of  a  man 
who  rejected  the  miracles  of  Christ,  denied  His 
deity,  and  interpreted  His  life  according  to  the 
assumptions  of  the  legendary  theory.  Because  He 
is  "the  goal  of  all  goodness,  the  summit  of  all 
thought,  the  perfection  of  all  beauty,  the  crown  of 
all  character,"  Jesus  Christ  cannot  be  lightly  set 
aside  by  any  intelligent  mind  even  when  that  mind 
is  linked  in  personal  life  with  an  unbelieving  heart. 
Thus  it  becomes  true  once  more  that 
"Their  rock  is  not  as  our  Rock, 
Even  our  enemies  themselves  being  judges." 

Christ  cannot  be  ignored  or  wholly  discredited. 
He  must  be  considered,  and  considered  apart  from 
all  other  men.  Here  is  One  Who  stands  alone  ac- 
cording to  the  testimony  of  friend  and  foe,  believer 
and  unbeliever.     His  Name  is  above  every  name 

378 


The  Inner  Witness  of  the  Fourth  Gospel 

because  of  its  own  essential  superiority.  There  may 
be  another  Lincoln  or  Washington,  another  Shakes- 
peare or  Milton,  another  Dante  or  Plato,  but  not 
another  Christ.  Other  names  can  be  linked  together, 
Caesar  and  Alexander,  Napoleon  and  Wellington, 
Longfellow  and  Tennyson,  Wesley  and  Whitefield, 
Cromwell  and  Lincoln,  but  the  name  of  Jesus  stands 
alone.  God  hath  given  Him  a  name  which  is  above 
every  name.  If  we  would  associate  His  name  with 
another,  we  must  seek  it  in  the  sacred  records  of 
revelation;  in  the  baptismal  formula  in  which 
Christ  co-ordinates  Himself  with  the  Father  and 
the  Holy  Spirit;  in  the  devotional  atmosphere  of 
the  Christian  Church  as  it  finds  expression  in  the 
doxology, 

"Praise  God,  from  Whom  all  blessings  flow. 
Praise  Him,  all  creatures  here  below; 
Praise  Him  above,  ye  heavenly  host; 
Praise  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost." 

Thus  we  conclude  our  present  study  of  the  fourth 
Gospel  with  our  minds  fixed  upon  the  same  Person 
and  the  same  doctrine  that  claimed  our  attention 
when  we  took  up  John's  initial  statement,  "In  the 
beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the  Word  was  with 
God,  and  the  Word  was  God." 


379 


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